


Meanwhile, In The UnderWorld

by Redawilo



Series: Main Stuff [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Angels, Demons, Explicit Sexual Content, Magic, Multi, Vampires, check each entry for specifics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-16
Updated: 2017-12-28
Packaged: 2018-12-16 01:41:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 25
Words: 58,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11818539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redawilo/pseuds/Redawilo
Summary: "MITUW" is the name I have given to my collection of shorts relating to a handful of demons and those they associate with. These characters include a lazy demon lord, a flirtatious transvestite vampire, an angel who is not quite being held captive, and many others. This collection is usually just about their day-to-day lives, but it occasionally contains explicit sexual content. Each chapter will contain more information about what to expect.This is one of several original works of mine!Updates sporadically.





	1. Rico's Magic Lesson 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rico, a young half-angel, seeks out Demon Lord Mikaru for help with her magic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! I wrote this thing over a year ago. How time flies...
> 
> Rating: G  
> Characters: Rico, Mikaru

“And that’s why I wanted to ask you for help…” Rico muttered. Her hands were clasped in front of her and her eyes on the floor. “Please, I don’t know where else I could go to learn!”

Mikaru looked the young half-angel over, considering her carefully. Rico’s bloodline was strong, and it wasn’t a stretch to say that all who knew her parents had been expecting great things from her. Her cousin Leia was already considered to have the greatest potential of any of Mikaru’s elite, and the two of them were practically the same age. Rico, by contrast, had yet to show any signs of physical or magical prowess. While none of her friends or family judged her for it, Rico’s lack of strength had become a cause of great stress for her as of late. Mikaru understood this and had even been considering offering his assistance for a while. He had not yet, however, because he was unsure if doing so would reward him in anyway. Like anyone else Mikaru _could_ be kind, but charitability was not one of his primary characteristics. With the angel standing before him, almost begging him for help and eyes watering and ready to burst with tears should she be rejected, Mikaru’s kindness was being tested.

“I _can_ teach you. Of course I can. I’ve guided your father and uncles towards wielding other elements, and even pointed your grandmother towards electricity instead of fire when she had been trying to learn something new. The question is: what can you offer in return for my services? Your father and uncles are able to protect me and my lands better with their taught skills, and I had been returning a favor to your mother by giving pointers to your grandmother. But what about you? You cannot swear your allegiance to me; we don’t yet know if you are a reaper, and we don’t know if your potential would be of any use to me.”

Rico shifted her weight from one foot to the other, her gaze still directed downward. “I don’t know, honestly. I’ve been trying to think of what I can do, but I haven’t thought of anything yet.” She hesitated for a moment. “Or at least, nothing I’d be _willing_ to do.”

“Sometimes deals are not pleasant to uphold one’s end of, but I understand what you mean. I don’t wish to make you do something you do not want. Your mother is not somebody I need to be making enemies of. She is only my prisoner because she wants to be, after all.”

Those words stung at Rico’s heart. Her mother was a pure-blooded angel, and an extremely powerful one at that. Not only did she rank highly amongst the OverWorld’s demon slayers, but she was a Grim Reaper to boot. If Keyontay wanted, she could end even Demon Lord Mikaru’s life with ease and free herself. That Rico couldn’t even command as much strength as her mother held in her pinky finger made her feel that much more depressed and desperate for help.

The demon must have noticed how unwell his words sat with her because he sighed and rubbed at his forehead. “Alright, how about we do this: I’ll help you right here and now to find what element you are most proficient at and give you some pointers on how to start wielding it? That will be as far as my charity goes. If you want any more from me, you will have to pay the price. I don’t know what price that would be, but we’ll cross that bridge if the time comes. Who knows, maybe some basic instruction will be all you need and anything else you’ll be able to get from Rita? I’m sure you’d be willing to pay any price to her, if she ever asks one.”

Rico’s head snapped up and her eyes widened in shock. She had been fully prepared to be rejected, even though she was about to cry just thinking about it. Mikaru agreeing to help her had surprised her so much so that his remark about Rita had gone completely over her head. A broad smile stretched across Rico’s face.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!” Rico shouted excitedly. “So, how do we start? Rita said that it’s all about feeling your magic pooling in one place and then pushing it towards your extremities. But that hasn’t worked for me. I can feel my magic in my hand, but I can’t for the life of me create a flame. I also can’t even heal a papercut on my finger…” She raised her hand and frowned at it as she spoke. “Fire and light are all she knows how to teach, and what both of us think I should be able to use.”

Mikaru shook his head. “Methods like those are only useful once you understand what element you best deal with. Just because fire and light are what your parents naturally wield doesn’t mean that will be what you can do. After all, your grandmother can barely handle light magic, but is a genius with air. You’re quite the hybrid; I don’t expect you to be a typical fire demon or light angel.” He extended a clawed hand towards her. “Give me your hand.”

Rico obediently placed her hand on his. He gently gave her arm a tug, and she took a step closer. Mikaru placed his free hand on her other shoulder and peered up into her eyes. They were golden, but almost brown. It was a shame; Mikaru really did like the Ranoo golden hue. It was just another reason why he did not desire having Rico under his command, although he would not tell this to anyone but his sister. Clearing his head of that minor distracting thought, he instructed her to close her eyes. She did so without a word.

“I take it you already know how to gather your magic into any part of your body, correct?” She nodded in response. “Good. That will make this easier. I want you to pool as much of it as you can around your heart.”

“Why my heart?” she asked, worry slipping into her voice.

Mikaru gave a shrug. “The where doesn’t really matter, to be honest. It just needs to be pooled somewhere and the heart was the first place I thought of.”

Understanding this, Rico thought it easy enough. Taking a slow breath, she focused her mind on drawing the magic that flowed all through her body towards her center. She knew that with practice sending any amount of magical energy to any part of the body could be done in a millisecond and without a thought. The best she could do took concentration a few seconds. She tried to think positively about this, as at first it had taken her nearly a minute with no distractions, but through practice had sped up the process significantly and was able to still listen to instruction while doing so. With his hands on hers and her shoulder, Rico was certain that Mikaru could feel exactly what she was doing. In fact, just as she had managed to concentrate everything she could where she had been instructed to Mikaru nodded in satisfaction and spoke again.

“Very good. Keep it there. I’m going to be using dark magic, so this will not be comfortable to you, but it is the easiest method. I’ll be sending a few pulses of it through your body, try to remain still.”

Rico swallowed hard and took another deep breath, both bracing herself as well as keeping her magic where it needed to be. There was a second’s pause, and suddenly a dull but intense pain shot up through her arm where he held her palm and wracked its way through her entire body. She winced and nearly doubled over in pain. She could feel her magic fraying and beginning to seep back into the rest of her body so she wrangled it back as quickly as she could. Mikaru waited for her to have full control of herself again before hitting her with the second shock.

By the fourth wave of dark magic through her body, tears were streaming from Rico’s tightly shut eyes and her hand in Mikaru’s was squeezing crushingly tight. She was barely suppressing her sobs, and had somehow managed not to cry out at any point. The demon hummed curiously and removed his hand from her shoulder. She took that as a sign that she could let go of his hand, and the moment the two were no longer touching she dropped to the ground and curled herself into a ball.

Mikaru seemingly paid her no mind, instead mumbling to himself in an incoherent manner to anyone who might have been listening. He was smiling, and his eyes danced as he mulled over possibilities. Casting his gaze to her again, he waited for Rico to gather herself once more. The magic that had been sent through her was no longer running its course, so it only took a few minutes for the pain she had been feeling to subside and for her tears to stop spilling forth. She breathed deeply and wearily got her feet, a hand on the wall to help brace her. Finally she turned her attention back to the demon she had asked for help. He was grinning.

“Could you give me a quick and dirty rundown of the six magical elements?” he asked her.

She blinked in confusion. “Sure, but why do you need to know?”

“I do not; I want to see what you know.”

Giving as light as shrug as she could, Rico began. “Fire, earth, water, air, light, and dark are the six elements. Fire is simple; it’s about creating and manipulating flames. Earth as a few components to it, but the basics are that you can change the shape and density of rocks. Water too has a couple different forms, but is mainly used to control the behavior of water. Air is mainly used to manipulate the wind, light magic can heal, and dark magic…” she paused. “Dark magic… I don’t really know what it is. I know its light magic’s opposite, but that’s it.”

Mikaru nodded a few times knowingly. “Dark magic is a strange beast. Not many can use it, and of them there’s even less that understand how to. I like to describe it as ‘controlling magic’. What I did just now could technically have been done with any element, but because dark magic is primarily used to make things do your bidding, it was easiest to use. What I did was send pulses through your body, forcing it to try and channel a different element each time. I was feeling your reactions with my other hand, seeing which caused the biggest disturbance. Would you care to take a guess which element it was?”

The half-angel was about to shake her head, paused, and tilted it a little to one side instead. “Don’t…don’t tell me it was dark.”

A smirk was flashed up at her. “I won’t tell you, then. Your second strongest reaction _was_ light, though. That is interesting. _Very_ interesting…” Mikaru put a finger to his lips in thought. “Dark primary and light secondary. Such a combo is rare, but the possibilities…” he pointed that finger at her. “Learn to control both of those, and you would be able to accomplish just about anything you set your mind you. I am very impressed.”

Rico shuffled her feet uncomfortably. “I don’t understand. I don’t even know what dark magic can do, let alone how to start using it.”

Mikaru gave her shoulder a firm pat. “Keep taking lessons with Rita, she ought to know enough to get you started with light magic. Don’t worry about being unable to do anything with it right away; it is your secondary, after all. You should be able to pick up on it through diligence alone, though. After that, come talk to me again. I’ll give you the best crash course in dark magic you could ever wish for.”

He gave Rico a lazy wave that contrasted with his apparent enthusiasm and newfound interest in her as he turned and left her in the hallway where they had run into each other and had been working. Rico watched him go, still confused as to what exactly it meant that she could use dark magic, let alone what sort of things could be done with it and light magic together. She wanted to push him for more information already, but she knew better than to waste her effort. She had seen others try plenty of times to get Mikaru to explain something further when he did not want to and all of them failed every time. Instead she breathed a sigh and meandered off in the other direction, wondering if Rita was around or if she would have to do some solo practice when it came to picking up on light magic.


	2. Neighbors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikaru and Delalo go visiting a neighboring domain in order to "greet" the new lord.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: T  
> Character: Mikaru, Delalo

Four demons had been summoned to the main hall of Mikaru’s palace. Delalo and the triplets had been informed by one of the servants that the lord had something to discuss with them briefly, and that Delalo specifically was to clear her schedule for the rest of the day and for the next. All four of them waited patiently for their master to arrive, wondering what he needed from them.

Mikaru arrived with a loud yawn. He looked like he had just gotten out of bed, which considering the lazy habit he had picked up in recent years was likely the case. He approached his four waiting minions and greeted them with yet another yawn.

“Good, you’re all here.” He said with a smile, looking from one to another. “I have some business that I need to take care of personally. Delalo…” the shortest one of them gave him her full attention. “I want you to accompany me.”

“What? But what about the palace? Shouldn’t I be here to keep an eye on it?” she questioned.

“That’s why I called the triplets.” Mikaru told her, turning his gaze to the three tall demons beside her. Aside from their height, Aurora, Kyle, and Jake looked very little alike. In fact, the only other trait they had in common was their golden eyes, which had become the signature of their bloodline. “Delalo and I will not be gone too long. I plan to get back before nightfall tomorrow, but we may be delayed an hour or two. I’d like the three of you to hold down the fort. You don’t really need to go out of your way to do anything, just be here and be ready to drive away any unwanted company. Although I doubt you’ll have any problems with that. Understand?”

“As you wish, Master.” Aurora told him happily.

“Of course.” Kyle replied.

“Got it.” Jake muttered.

“Wonderful! I hope to leave before too long, so you three are dismissed.”

All three gave their master a bow before leaving the hall and going their separate ways. Delalo waited until they had gotten out of earshot before questioning Mikaru.

“So why do you want me to go with you?” she asked, her tone serious.

“We have a new neighbor on our northern border. He took the title of lord just yesterday, and I want to pay him a friendly little visit. You know; give the new blood a chance to ask his senior any questions his little heart desires.” Mikaru said with a playful grin.

“I’m sure that’s what you are going to do.” The short girl was not at all convinced. She knew Mikaru too well. If he wanted to sit down and have a friendly chat with a neighboring lord, he wouldn’t be taking somebody with him. Or at least he would take one of the triplets instead of his right-hand minion.

“You needn’t worry. Your job in all of this is just to follow my lead. I’m not asking you to do too much.”

“Are you going to be visiting while looking like you just got out of bed?”

MIkaru ran a hand through his waist-length hair, his fingers encountering a number of knots along the way. He brought his hand in front of his face and observed the strand or two that he had pulled free and were entangled in his fingers. He hummed in thought and shook them from his hand.

“It doesn’t really matter, but I probably shouldn’t. I don’t need to be looking my best for what I have in mind, but I guess I ought to clean myself up some, at least.” He admitted.

The demon girl giggled and put her hand on his shoulder. “Right, let’s do that. I’ll give you a bath and brush your hair for you.” Her eyes quickly scanned his clothing. “And pick something out for you that doesn’t look like you’ve been sleeping in it for the past six days.”

“Hey, I change my clothes every day! And I’ve only been sleeping sixteen hours a day lately.”

Delalo rolled her eyes and tugged at his sleeve. “Come on, sleepyhead. We should do this quickly so we can leave as soon as possible.”

Mikaru gave in and allowed her to lead him back towards his private quarters where he had just emerged from not minutes earlier. He was fully capable of grooming himself, but since Delalo herself had made the offer, he was gladly going to take her up on it.

*****

A little less than an hour later, Delalo closed the front gates of the palace behind them. Mikaru had insisted on traveling by foot, which surprised the girl. The distance to their target domain’s capital was easily within running distance for demons as powerful as they were, but Mikaru’s lethargy had made the girl expect him to hire a carriage or some other mode of transportation. When questioned all the lord had to say was that he always did prefer to travel by foot.

By the wee hours of the morning they had reached their destination. The domain to their north, which they were now deep within, lacked the lush trees and other foliage that Mikaru was so fond of about their own. Instead, vast rolling fields of grass and flowers made up most of the land. As they walked now, Delalo had to wonder if any of the flowers they passed would make for good perfumes. She didn’t have a chance to stop and smell them, though, as her master kept up a rapid pace. After a few minutes, she gave up on thinking about the flowers and instead chose to admire the sight of her master being so energetic for a change.

It was still an hour or so before daybreak when they entered the capital. Most everyone in the city was still asleep, and those who were out and about paid the visitors little mind. To them it simply looked as if a pair of children had just arrived and were taking a walk around. Delalo would smile and wave back at any who acknowledged them, but Mikaru ignored them entirely. He was focused on reaching the castle that lay near the center.

Unlike Mikaru’s palace, the castle had no gates or gardens surrounding it. It was merely a large, cylindrical spire jutting out from center of the city and piercing many stories into the sky. A pair of demons stood guard near the large wooden doors. Mikaru approached them casually, stopping only when both cast him glares and held their arms out in front of his path.

“No tourists.” One of the guards grunted.

“I’m no tourist, fellas.” Mikaru stated calmly, his hands in his pockets. “Although I don’t blame you for not recognizing me. No one ever does.”

They raised their eyebrows quizzically. “Identify yourself and state your business, then.”

Delalo stepped forward to answer them. “This man here is no child, sirs. He is Demon Lord Mikaru, come all the way from the domain on your southern border to give his greetings to your new lord.”

Both guards reeled at the name they were given. The stepped back and turned away from them, whispering fervently to each other. Mikaru waited patiently, having expected this sort of treatment. He hadn’t announced his intention of visiting, and truthfully he was one of the most unassuming demons in the whole of the UnderWorld. He wasn’t even five feet tall, and his features were indeed quite youthful. He was frequently mistaken in his own domain for a mere child or very young teenager. As such there had been many times where he deliberately played the part of a child just so that he could roam about without anyone bothering him.

Now though, he needed to be truthful about his identity. Something the guards were still questioning. One of them cast him a quick glance before saying to the other, “Just look at his horns! No random kid is going to have horns like that!”

“It could just be magic. We shouldn’t think he is a devil just because of that. And even if he was one, who’s to say he’s really Lord Mikaru?”

“Well, what do you know about the guy?”

“Um, not much to be honest. I just know he’s supposed to look very young. I’ve heard he’s a half-elf, after all.”

The guards both looked at him again, taking note of the slight point of his ears. As if for further clarification, they looked Delalo over as well. Mikaru and his minion were nearly identical, if not for her being just a little slimmer and shorter, as well as having shorter horns typical of an ordinary demon.

“So if he really IS Lord Mikaru, would that make that girl…?”

“We should ask.”

They turned around again. “Would you care to give your name as well, Miss?”

“Certainly.” She said cheerfully. “It is Delalo, right-hand minion of Demon Lord Mikaru.”

The two guards gave each other a look. She claimed to be exactly who they thought she was. “One last question for you, then. If this man is as you claim him to be, then he is a devil. His horns check out, but such things are easy to fake with a certain amount of magic. We would like more proof.”

Mikaru’s tail twitched impatiently. “You want me to show my wings?” he asked, offended. “How disrespectful!”

“Master, calm down.” Delalo muttered to him. “This is your fault for not announcing your visit.”

The demon grit his teeth and cursed. He didn’t like dealing with common guards, but what else could he do? He doubted anyone in the castle would be able to recognize him, what with most of them probably being completely new with the change of command.

“Fine!” he grunted. Mikaru hadn’t been wearing a shirt that accommodated his extra limbs, so he quickly pulled it off and handed it to Delalo for a moment. He breathed a sigh of aggravation and slipped his eyes shut. Pooling his magic at his back, it took only a second for a pair of large, black, bat-like wings to burst forth from his back. He spread them proudly and rolled his shoulders a little to ease the discomfort summoning his wings always brought him. “Satisfied?” he asked the guards, his gaze piercing.

Both had quickly backed away when his wings had appeared. They stared in awe, slightly alarmed that Mikaru was indeed who he claimed himself to be. Seeing that he had made his point, Mikaru’s wings faded away again and he took his shirt back from his sister.

“So are you going to let us in now?” he asked, pulling it over his head and getting it settled into place. “I have business to discuss with your lord.”

One of the guards quickly went to the doors and pushed them open, beckoning for their visitors to enter. They were not led too far inside before they were told to stay put while the lord was informed of their arrival. The room they waited within was clearly the main room of the tower. It was clean, and decorated simply but expensively. Everything from the lighting to the carpet beneath their feet must have cost the previous lord quite the pretty penny. Mikaru wasn’t impressed, and Delalo didn’t take to it any better.

Their wait was only about ten minutes before the guard returned, this time tailing a young man. He was unassuming, to say the least. Short brown hair and eyes, horns large but much straighter than Mikaru’s, and average in height and build. It was obvious from the moment he came into view that he was nervous, but the second he laid eyes on Mikaru some of that went out the window.

“I told you he was a runt.” The guard muttered, trying to stay hushed so that their visitors wouldn’t be able to hear. The young man cast him an angry glare.

“Don’t you dare speak that way of a lord, lowly guard.” The young man snapped harshly. He turned a smile to Mikaru and stepped forward, hand and arm extended towards him. “It is a pleasure to meet another lord so soon. I am Lord Ralph.” He stated pleasantly.

The smile Mikaru cast his host was nothing short of sickly sweet and his voice was bubbling with enthusiasm when he shook his hand and spoke. “The pleasure is all mine, Lord Ralph. I am known as Lord Mikaru.” His childishness caused Ralph to calm down all the more, and he instructed his guard to return to this post. With a bow, the demon obeyed. When the door closed behind him, Ralph turned his attention over to Delalo.

“And who is this fine young lady?”

Delalo gave a short bow. “I am Lord Mikaru’s right-hand minion, Delalo.”

“You two look an awful lot alike, if you do not mind my saying so.”

“That would be because we are related.” Mikaru stated. “Delalo is my younger sister.”

“I see, I see! That makes a lot of sense!” Ralph turned his attention back to Mikaru. “I must admit that when I was told that another lord had arrived and that he had brought a bodyguard, I was terrified. I’ve never quite known how to handle myself in formal or political matters. Please forgive me if I make any mistakes.”

Mikaru waved him off. “Nonsense. As long as you are on your best behavior, you have nothing to fear by my visit. I am not fond of stiff pleasantries or false flattery.” No sooner had he said so than his entire demeanor changed. His tone dropped, and his expression darkened threateningly. “So while I am on the subject, how about we drop all of this nonsense and get straight to the point, shall we?”

The sudden change in atmosphere caused Ralph to be taken aback, to put it midly. “Uh, sure. Would you like to sit down somewhere while we talk or?”

“No thanks, right here is just fine. I want to talk about borders.”

“Borders?”

“Yes. I hail from the domain on your southern border. It is a region lush with trees and other overgrowth. Have you ever been to it?”

“I can’t say I have. I grew up here and have never left.”

“Unfortunate. Visiting other lands builds character. How old are you?”

Ralph shifted uncomfortably. “I’m a bit over two hundred.”

“My, you certainly are powerful for your age! To be so young and yet have the strength to bring down a lord… You’ve got a lot of responsibility now, you know that? I certainly hope you have thought your decision through.”

Their hosting lord narrowed his eyes distastefully. “Do not speak to me so condescendingly!”

“Why? I already told you that I hate false flattery. Besides, just earlier when you first saw me, you stopped being so nervous. And when I put on the little kid act you stopped feeling threatened. Who is the one being condescending here? Here’s a word of warning: never underestimate a lord, no matter what he or she looks like. Do you have any idea of the world you’ve just stepped into? Have you ever considered the kind of time, work, and dedication it takes to keep a domain afloat? Right now your people ought to be greatly troubled about the loss of their lord, meaning they need a strong new leader to take that place. If you cannot be that lord, I suggest you step down immediately. I’ve seen it a number of times. Some youth dislikes what their lord is doing, spends years hunting down the souls they need to overpower them, and then kills them and takes their place. But the moment they are in power they neglect their people and they are killed off and replaced by somebody else. The cycle repeats until somebody with enough sense gets the throne and things finally settle down some ten years after everything started. So I am asking you; you do realize that you have a lot of responsibility now, right?”

“Of course I do! I’m not a child!”

“You are!” Mikaru bellowed, his voice ringing throughout the room. There was a moment of dead silence before he spoke again, softly but firmly. “I did not come here to discuss your age or ability to rule. We are getting off topic. Once more, I am here to speak about borders.” He waited a moment, but got no response, so he continued. “It has always been my policy to have my borders open. Should your people wish to visit they are welcome to. They may come and go as they please. I do not even mind soldiers visiting. And of course you yourself are welcome too. I hope that once things have settled down here, you will be so gracious as to allow my people and myself the same privilege.”

“We will see about that…” Ralph muttered.

“Of course, of course. Now, I do have one little matter than I must warn you about. You see, I do not keep an army. I’ve never liked promoting common demons to any position of power that they might try to abuse. As such, I have no first line of defense and can therefore be a rather paranoid man. While I offer your soldiers freedom to come and go across my borders, I do get weary if there are a great number of them around or within them. Which brings me to my point…” Mikaru cast Ralph a look that was nothing short of dangerous. “Should a hundred or more of your soldiers ever be stationed near or within my domain I will consider it a declaration of war. And when it comes to war it is my personal philosophy that as the lord of my domain it should be my responsibility to deal with it on my own. So if I find there to be even one more than a hundred of your soldiers near or within my borders, I will seek out and end every last one of their lives. After which it will be your turn.”

A chill ran down Ralph’s spine. Never had he imagined somebody so small could frighten him so much with just a look and a few words. Before he had a chance to come up with a reply, Mikaru’s demeanor shifted once more, and he was back to the childish person he had been when Ralph had first seen him.

“And that is all I wanted to say to you. Come Delalo, our friendly visit is now over and we don’t want to overstay our welcome. Besides, this old man could use a nap.” He turned to leave, but was stopped as Ralph found his voice again.

“Friendly?! Just what is your definition of ‘friendly’?” he shouted. “You showed up unannounced, woke me up, treated me like a child, and threatened me!”

“Boy, you have no idea.” Mikaru sneered. “Here’s another word of warning: your other neighbors are going to be paying you a visit soon. I’d expect they will be showing up unannounced at all hours to discuss borders and other things with you just as I have. And believe me; you are going to come away with a whole new outlook on what you consider to be a ‘friendly chat between lords’. No one in our position is looking out for each other, kid. We are in this for ourselves and for our people, and no one else matters. In fact, sometimes not even our own people matter in the grand scheme of things. We are not a kind lot, and none of us are what you might call ‘friends’. At best we are indifferent or respectful to one another. _Thousands_ of years of first-hand experience has taught me that. So try and have a little respect for your seniors when it comes to their advice. Advice is free, and often times the most important thing that we can give, and we don’t give it often. Now if you’ll excuse me, there is a nap with my name on it waiting for me back at home and it’s a long walk.”

Without another word Mikaru rounded on his heel and made for the exit. Delalo toddled after him; paying no mind to the shell-shocked lord he had just been speaking with. She had been wondering why Mikaru wanted her to go along, and now she knew. She wasn’t there to introduce him, or to prove his identity. Heck, he hadn’t even wanted her along for her company. In that brief visit she served one purpose: intimidation factor. While her brother was more than powerful enough to ruin Ralph and any guards he might have available, the added weight of having his right-hand standing beside him the entire time was not lost on the young lord. Anyone else would certainly have worked, but not to the same extent. Delalo couldn’t help but giggle. Her brother really was dedicated to his position, even if he now slept for two-thirds of the day.


	3. Ice Skating Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At a young age, Keyontay the angel learned that Aurora was an ice skater. Because she is attracted to him, she allows herself to be brought onto the ice where he and Arun are practicing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: T  
> Characters: Keyontay, Aurora, Arun

Some years ago…

The halls of Mikaru’s palace were always quiet, but walking them alone made them seem even more so. Keyontay had walked them alone only enough times that she could count them on one hand, and so she found the silence almost unsettling. She was technically a prisoner, after all. An angel the demon lord had captured and was holding against her will. To be quite honest she was incredibly surprised she was even allowed to move freely the few times it happened. She supposed Mikaru had some way of tracking her movements. That would certainly be handy for him if he could.

In fact, she wished she could track herself right then. Some time ago she had been seeing if she could remember her way between Delalo’s quarters and the main hall of the place, and had come to realize she had gotten horribly lost. She attempted to find her way back, but instead found herself in an extremely cold area that was entirely foreign to her. Hugging her arms around her torso for warmth, she continued on, now more curious about what was ahead than getting back.

With every step getting colder still, she proceeded down the very long hallway that occasionally broke out into stairways leader deeper down. At the end she found herself standing in a large, mostly empty arena. There were crude seats like bleachers made from stone on all sides. In the center was a low wall encircling most of what looked like a thick sheet of ice. Keyontay hardly got to take a good look around, for a lone figure on the ice caught and kept her attention.

It was Aurora. The angel had only seen him once or twice since her capture, but his long, white hair tied back into a ponytail was unmistakable. He was skating, completely oblivious to her presence. In typical ice skater fashion, his red and black clothing was skin-tight, leaving rather little of his womanly figure to the imagination. Occasionally the lazy, invisible and random path he was tracing would get interrupted by a leap or a twirl of some kind. Even from where Keyontay was standing, she could see the peaceful expression painted on his face, even as his breathes came in the form of light pants. He was completely in his own element. Keyontay stared, completely in awe and feeling herself blushing. He was beautiful.

Finally, after several long minutes, Aurora’s movements slowed and came to a stop. He breathed a deep sigh, coming back to reality in the process. It was only then that he noticed that he had an audience. He cast Keyontay a warm smile and skated over to the wall near her.

“And just what are you doing down here without an escort, Key?” he asked in a teasing voice, leaning against the wall.

Keyontay jumped a little and slowly approached him. She tried to look him in the eye and failed. Instead she decided to look down at the ice. “Delalo is busy, and she told me I could explore if I wanted to. I thought I’d try to find my way to the main hall, but…I got pretty lost.”

Aurora chuckled, a sound that made the angel’s heart pound more than she would have liked to admit. “I sure hope that’s the case, and that you’re not trying to escape. That aside, you certainly are lost. I don’t know too many people who could end up down here of all places when they were trying to get to the main hall.”

The angel had to agree. Normally she had a pretty good sense of direction, but Mikaru’s palace was a complete maze if she had ever seen one. Trying to change the subject, Keyontay glanced around the room.

“What is this place?”

“An ice skating rink.” Aurora replied, standing upright again and looking around with her. “It used to be a subterranean lake. When I was still young, I and others expressed a desire for a place to ice skate, so Master froze the lake and built this place around it.”

“Mikaru did that?” she asked in shock.

Aurora nodded. “Master built every part of this palace himself. I’m just thankful he added this whole room.” His eyes skimmed the smooth surface of the lake and he lowered his voice to an affectionate purr. “I could skate for hours and not get bored. I love it.”

Keyontay took that moment to look at him again. She almost wished she hadn’t. He still had a thin layer of sweat on him, and it only made his clothing cling tighter to his skin. She quickly looked away, her face entirely red.

She felt thankful when she heard somebody call Aurora’s name. Something to distract her from the man himself! Both of them turned towards the person calling out to him. It was a woman, dressed like she too was ready to go out on the ice. She was just a bit taller than Keyontay, and clearly a few years older. Unlike all the other people in the UnderWorld the angel had met, she was certainly not a demon. She looked human, save her sea-green hair, long and pointed ears, and the green tint to her skin.

“Of course I would find you here.” She laughed, walking up to Aurora without hesitation. The angel had to wonder if she was the only one bothered by his appearance. A huge grin full of long, thin, and sharp fangs split the woman’s face. “Where else would you be?”

“Decided to get some practice in, too, Arun?” he asked her.

“Yeah. Jake’s busy doing his thing, so I figured I’d come out here and do mine.” She turned her attention to Keyontay beside her. “And who is this?”

“Ah, right, you two haven’t met yet. Arun, this is Keyontay.”

“Oh!” she shouted, eyes widening with excitement. “You’re the angel I’ve been hearing about! Oh my goodness, it’s nice to finally meet you!” she grabbed Keyontay’s hand. The angel couldn’t help but notice the webbing between her fingers. “I’m Arun, Jake’s assistant!”

“N-nice to meet you…” Keyontay stuttered out, taken aback by the woman’s friendliness. Jake was the foul tempered and youngest of the non-identical triplet brothers that served Demon Lord Mikaru. In other words, he was Aurora’s youngest brother. She was surprised that such a friendly person would be connected to him somehow. “Jake’s assistant? What do you assist him with?”

“All kinds of things.” Arun shrugged, releasing her hand. “He likes to fiddle with electronics, so I help him out. But not always, as you can see. I come here to skate sometimes. It’s the closest thing I’m gonna get to swimming in a place like this.”

“You like to swim?”

She nodded. “Of course! I’m a sea imp, after all. I practically LIVE to swim.” She breathed a heavy, dramatic sigh. “But the largest and nearest body of water in this domain happens to be frozen over. So I make do with what I’ve got.” She gestured to the ice. “Have you ever gone ice skating?”

“N-no, I haven’t. It looks like it’d be fun, though.”

“You should try it!” Arun looked up at Aurora. “Hey, why don’t you take Key here out onto the ice?”

Before Keyontay could say anything, Aurora smiled. “If you can find a pair of skates that fit her, I’d be happy to. What do you say, Key? Want to give it a shot?”

The angel could feel more than see the two pairs of expectant eyes on her. Shyly, she said she’d try it. Arun let out a cry of joy and motioned for her to follow. Keyontay was led to a backroom that smelled of sweat. Arun apologized for the stench and hurriedly looked through a shoe rack lined with different pairs of skates. She removed a few and brought them to the angel, explaining they were old and no longer owned by anyone in particular and that she should try them on to see if they fit. While Keyontay went one by one testing their size, Arun opened a locker across the room and removed a pair of new, green skates and put them on. She was done faster than the angel was, and waited patiently for her to finish. When Keyontay had found the pair that fit best, Arun helped her to her feet and guided her out of the room, not bothering to put the other skates away.

It was difficult to walk on the thin blades, but thankfully the walk was short and Arun’s supporting grip was stronger and sturdier than it looked. When they reached the edge of the ice, Keyontay braced herself on the wall while Arun climbed over and Aurora skated over to join them. With their helped, Keyontay climbed over as well. She stood unsteadily and Arun moved a few feet out to give them more room.

“It’ll be easier once you get moving.” Aurora promised. “Momentum helps a lot. I assume you’ve never been on rollerblades, either?”

“Never.”

“Well, do your best.” He gently took hold of her forearms, and she reflexively did the same. With his coaxing, she began to move.

Keyontay focused on moving her legs and feet in what felt like the correct way. As she got the hang of it after a few steps, Aurora sped up. It was only when they were doing a moderately slow pace that the angel realized just how impressive it was that he was keeping up with her so naturally while moving backwards the whole time. She made an attempt to look up at him from where her eyes had been focused on her feet, and realized too late that that was a bad idea. There was no longer a wall between them anymore and he was _so close_. As she whipped her gaze back to the ice, cheeks burning, she could hear him chuckling again.

“Not bad for your first time.” He laughed. “You’ve got a good sense of balance, I see.”

Keyontay could only nod. She didn’t trust her voice in the least. Aurora let go of one of her arms, his other hand sliding down to clasp her hand instead. She hardly had time to register the change when he picked up the pace. It wasn’t by much, but Keyontay had to focus again to keep from falling. Her attention was only broken again when Arun skated up beside them.

“Looking good!” Arun called out, getting the angel to look up again. “Hey, how old are you, kid?”

“I’ve just turned thirteen!” Keyontay replied, stumbling a little in the process and thankful that Rory was still holding her.

“Thirteen?!” Arun shouted, shooting Aurora a look. “Don’t you think she’s a bit young for you?”

And there went Keyontay’s cheeks coloring again. The man only laughed. “Of course she is! Why do you think I’m not trying to flirt with her?”

“Oh yeah, like I believe that!” she replied, eyeing the way he was holding the angel’s hand.

“You’re the one who suggested I bring her out here. And I taught you the same way, remember?” he pointed out. “Have I ever once made a move on you?”

Arun hummed in thought. “No, I suppose not.” She sighed. “Right, my bad.”

A minute later, and Aurora let go of Keyontay’s hand. She realized they had made an entire lap around the lake, and felt a sting of pride in herself for having done so without falling. He told her to stay near the wall, but to skate as freely as she felt comfortable with. She didn’t question his instruction, but slowed her pace a little and began to trace small circles near the wall.

While she did, she watched as best as she could as Arun and Aurora both moved further out onto the ice. She could hear them talking, communicating to each other something they were going to do, but couldn’t pay much attention to what they were saying. To her amazement, they began what was obviously a well-practiced routine.

After a few maneuvers it occurred Keyontay that it looked like they were meant to be dancing. They skated beside each other, occasionally holding hands on outstretched arms. Aurora would pull in her close, support her, or lift her when she jumped, all the while keeping them both moving. The angel came to a stop and braced herself against the wall to watch better as Aurora took both of Arun’s hands and they began spinning on an axis that was a single one of Aurora’s skates. Keyontay only realized her mouth was gaping open in awe when she heard two new voices behind her.


	4. Ice Skating Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things take a turn for the worse when two jealous demons enter the scene. Thankfully for Keyontay, she is brought to safety and the two are thoroughly punished. Not to mention it doesn't hurt her chances of spending more time with Aurora.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: T  
> Characters: Keyontay, Aurora, Arun, Delalo

“Oh, would you look at that? The one and only Aurora Ranoo is gracing the ice with her presence again.” Came a sarcastic call. “We are _ever_ so lucky to be able to witness the great Aurora during practice.”

The other person laughed. “Hey now, Aurora’s a man. Can’t you tell from that bulge in his pants? Or are you too blinded by the rest of that amazing body of his to notice?”

Keyontay frowned. She could already tell whoever they were, they were not fans of Aurora. The two men were speaking loud enough that Aurora could hear them, but it appeared he was ignoring them in favor of continuing his routine with Arun. Keyontay chose to follow his lead and ignore them too.

“Right, my bad!” the first one snickered. “I always get it mixed up what Aurora is. I get too lost in his eyes.”

“His eyes? Nah, his best feature is _clearly_ his hips. They’re matched only by how wonderful he is at skating!”

Keyontay couldn’t help it. She was too curious about who it was that was trying to taunt Aurora. She glanced over her shoulder. The two men were average in height and build, and decently attractive in their faces. They were glaring at Aurora with contempt, slinging their backhanded complements through their sneers. She looked away again. She didn’t care to give them any more of her attention if she could help it.

“Hey girl!” one of them shouted. “I saw you lookin’ at us! Got a problem? You one of Aurora’s disgusting fans?”

“No way, dude.” The other said. “She’s not a fan. Can’t you tell? She’s wearing skates, so she’s got to be his newest plaything.”

“Oh yeah! She probably is. I wouldn’t put it passed that pile of filth to like ‘em young!”

Keyontay continued to ignore them. She tried to let her attention only be on the pair doing their thing so beautifully on the ice, but the two men did not let up. Instead, they got angrier and continued to talk trash to try and get her to look at them again.

“So how is he in bed, huh? He do it just right for you? I assume he does, since he’s so _amazing_ and all!”

“Of course he does!” the man’s voice was higher pitched in a mock girl’s voice. “Aurora makes me absolutely _wet_ just by existing!”

Both of them began to laugh again. Keyontay thought it was disgusting, both in sound and what it was about. After a moment they didn’t seem so amused with themselves anymore, and they shot their angry glares her way again.

“Pay attention when somebody is talking to you, bitch!” one shouted.

“Just because he noticed you doesn’t make you special!” the other screamed.

Keyontay heard a burst of fire, and before she could even register that one of them had created a ball of flames it struck the ice beneath her feet. She fell. Her shriek was swallowed up by the frigid water that enveloped her. Panic struck her and she clasped her hands over her mouth. She kicked her feet, trying to push herself to the surface again. She was a good swimmer, so despite the cold, the panic, and the weight of her skates she was certain she could do it.

She hadn’t expected the surface to freeze over several inches again so quickly. Ah…so one of them could use ice magic, it seemed. Weak magic would leave the ice fragile and she could break through. She pounded a fist against the ice, but it didn’t give like she was hoping it would. Cursing her lack of strength to break it, she tried to think of a way to melt it. Her light magic would take too long. She had another option available to her…but given her current situation she found it completely out of the question. More than anything else she would not, could not, let the demons of this domain know about _that_. Before she had time to wrack her panicked brain for a better answer, she heard a voice above her shout something. She didn’t have much of a change to figure out what was said, but it sounded like “dive”. Taking a chance, she dove again, putting some distance between her and the ice.

She made the right choice, for a second later another fireball burst through the ice, heating the water by several degrees all the way down to where Keyontay was. She wasted no time now in swimming back to the surface. The instant her head was out of the freezing water she felt a pair of hands reach under her armpits and lift her. She was pulled from the water effortlessly, although it hurt just a bit to be handled in such a way. She was just thankful to be out and slumped against Aurora’s chest, gulping down breaths of air between coughs. Somewhere in the back of her mind she registered the pricking feeling of a livid demon’s magic barely being restrained. Keyontay was all too familiar with that feeling, and felt incredibly grateful that for once it was not directed at her.

She was only vaguely aware of being passed off to Arun a moment later. “Get her somewhere warmer.” Aurora instructed. His voice was cold and barely holding back anger. Keyontay opened her eyes a fraction, and it was enough to just make out that her two assailants were frozen in place just beneath the surface of the ice themselves.

Arun nodded and scooped the angel up into her arms. For her part, Keyontay clung tightly to the imp’s neck and shoulders. As she was being carried away, she could hear Aurora mutter something about there being trash that needed to be burned. As Arun stepped into the hallway Keyontay again, the angel could hear the anguished cries of the two who had been slinging insults Aurora’s way. She was familiar with a demon’s dying shrieks, which they did not sound like, so she chose not to care too much about what exactly was happening.

The sea imp walked swiftly down the hallway, stopping only to open a door that the angel only vaguely remembered passing before. She was carried into a room decorated in black, dark reds, and accents of white. From the smell alone Keyontay assumed it belonged to Aurora. Arun set her down on a couch and hurried into another room, returning only a second later with a heavy red blanket which she wrapped snuggly around Keyontay. She pulled the ice skates off of her as well.

“Wait here. I’ve got a change of clothes you can put on in my locker. They’ll be a bit big on you, but it’ll be better than staying soaking wet.” She informed Keyontay.

“Won’t Rory care that his things are wet?” the angel asked, looking at the blanket she held tightly around herself.

“Nah. He likes the cold, and given the circumstances won’t mind at all.”

Before the angel could come up with any other means of protest, Arun was out the door again and running down the hallway. Keyontay bundled herself up tighter, finding the room to still be incredibly on the cold side. A minute or two later, Arun hurried back into the room. She thrust the dry clothing, as well as the shoes Keyontay had taken off into her arms before scooting her to a bathroom so she could change.

“Rory says to use whatever towel you want to dry off better.” She stated before closing the door.

The angel did just that. After removing her clothing she grabbed the first towel she saw and rid herself of the biting cold moisture still on her body. Unfortunately she was not given a dry set of underwear, although she suspected that was due to the difference in hers and Arun’s sizes. She wrung out hers as best she could before dressing herself completely again. She turned the blanket she had had on around and wrapped herself up with the dry side. When she stepped back out, Arun took her wet clothes and said she would get them washed for her and would return them as soon as she could.

“Now, I sort of pulled my skates off in a hurry, so I need to go put them away properly.” Arun stated, gesturing to her socked feet. “Along with all the others I dug out for you to try on. Rory should be here soon. He’ll take care of you.” After receiving a quick word of thanks from Keyontay, the imp once more hurried from the room.

Sure enough it was only a few minutes before Aurora himself entered his room. Keyontay had huddled up on his couch, clutching the blanket tightly to herself. He breathed a sigh of relief to see her doing as well as she was.

“I’m so sorry about that.” He began apologetically. “Those two are terrible and are always looking to take their jealousy out on me. Usually I can handle whatever they decide to throw my way, that’s why I was ignoring them. If I had known they’d turn on you like that, I would’ve done something about it sooner. That was low even for them!” he snapped angrily.

“I-It’s okay! It wasn’t your fault!” Keyontay hurriedly assured him.

He smiled at her briefly before stepping towards his bedroom. “I’ll be out in a moment.” He told her, closing the door behind him. For a few seconds she could hear what sounded like him opening and closing drawers, and then there was silence for several seconds. When he emerged again he was, much to her relief, no longer wearing his form-fitting clothing but instead a long skirt and blouse. He sat down beside her on the sofa.

“So um…you said those two were jealous? Of what?” Keyontay asked, finally able to look at him properly.

Aurora cast her a soft smile, and it alone warmed Keyontay more than the blanket enveloping her. “You see, those of us who enjoy ice skating sometimes put on performances that people can come and watch. I’ve actually got quite a number of fans because of it. Those two are awful, though. They don’t think I’m deserving of any amount of popularity, so they’re always trying to get under my skin.” He sighed and gave her another apologetic look. “I really am sorry. They’ve never involved somebody else like that before.” There was a brief pause before he spoke up again. “So how are you feeling? Are you still cold? It hasn’t been that long since you were in the water.”

“I’m a bit chilled still, but I’ll be fine, thanks.” She replied. “I didn’t know you could use fire magic. At least, I assume you were the one who melted the ice again. When we fought you only ever used ice.”

Aurora chuckled. “Like my brothers I was born a fire demon.” He explained. “Also like them I’ve taken the time to learn a second element. But unlike them I prefer my secondary element over my first. I don’t use fire magic very often, if I’m honest. It’s a good thing primary elements aren’t easy to lose one’s talent for.”

“That must come in handy, knowing more than one element.” She mumbled, thinking how nice it would have been to be able to melt that ice herself.

“Yeah, it does.” Aurora agreed. “It certainly surprises a lot of people, that’s for sure. I’m pretty sure those two had no idea I could use fire, either.” The crazed smirk that flashed on his face was rather unlike anything Keyontay had seen on him. She felt a chill run down her spine despite having seen a look like that a number of times from other demons.

“If…if I may ask, what exactly did you do to those two?”

“Hm?” The smirk vanished and was replaced with Aurora’s usual light-hearted one. “Oh, not too much. I just gave them some very painful first and maybe a couple of second degree burns. Nothing demons of their caliber shouldn’t be able to handle.” He giggled, and Keyontay couldn’t help but catch the sadistic tone in it.

“Rory really _is_ a demon…” she caught herself thinking.

Before their conversation could go any further, he stood up and offered her his hand. “If you’re feeling alright, how about I take you back to Delalo’s quarters? You can rest up better there, I imagine.”

Keyontay agreed and took his hand and was quickly pulled up onto her feet. Finally not distracted by what he was wearing, she for the first time realized his hands were incredibly soft. She didn’t get to savor the moment too long, as he let go of her the moment she was steady on her feet. Keyontay removed the blanket from her shoulders and made an attempt to fold it, but Aurora took it from her and tossed it unceremoniously onto the couch instead. With that out of the way he led her out into the hall again.

“By the way…” he began after they had climbed the first set of stairs. “You should come watch one of our performances some time. Arun and I would love for you to attend.”

The thought of the demon man skating seriously was enough to make the angel feel almost faint. He was stunning enough as it was when he was just leisurely doing what he wanted, or casually practicing with Arun. She couldn’t imagine what he must be like when he had an actual audience to impress. Whether Aurora could tell what she was thinking or not, Keyontay was thankful not to get any indication. She had barely managed to mutter a “sure” before a short demon girl came running towards them.

“Oh thank goodness!” Delalo cried out when she spotted them. She looked out of breath, but relieved. “Arun just came and told me what happened, so I ran as fast as I could!” she panted. “Key, I’m so glad you’re doing okay!”

Aurora raised an eyebrow. “She didn’t tell you Key would be fine?”

“She did, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t worried!” the demon girl declared. “Key’s my charge, after all. If something happens to her, it’s my neck that’s on the line!”

The angel let out a giggle. “I’m fine, Delalo.” She told her.

Aurora smiled and shook his head. “Alright, then I’ll let you see to the rest of her recovery.” He half-turned, giving them a wave. “I’ll let you know when our next performance is, Key.”

She hardly had a chance to wave back before Delalo grabbed her by the hand and gave her a tug. “C’mon. It’s freezing down here! I can hardly stand it myself, and I can’t imagine you’re too comfortable with it at the moment either.”

Keyontay let herself be dragged along, not minding that Delalo still had not let go of her hand. For a moment she even marveled that the girl’s hands felt just a bit rougher than Aurora’s did. She didn’t say as such out loud, though. However a different, although related thought struck her which she did voice.

“Delalo…” she muttered.

“Yeah?”

“Rory… He’s really pretty, isn’t he?”

For a moment she wondered if Delalo hadn’t heard her, but the demon gave her hand a light squeeze. “Yeah. He is.” She agreed, her smile warm.

***

“I still don’t get it. She was easily brought down by a surprise attack and some freezing cold water.” Delalo mumbled. “Not to mention it only took myself and the triplets to capture her in the first place. Usually when the OverWorld sends in a second hunter they’re stronger than the first. But Keyontay is _clearly_ weaker than the last one! Fifteen years ago, that tiny brat of an angel that came for you went toe-to-toe with the four of us _and_ Faullin and Rain at the same time and managed to get away! Not only that, she seriously crippled your forces! I mean, she _ki_ -”

“ _DELALO!_ ” the demon she had been talking to bellowed. The girl shut up immediately and gave her master a look that was both worried and apologetic. “That’s enough.” He breathed shakily. “I am well aware of what happened last time. There is no need for a recap.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “I do agree with you, though. This is very unlike the OverWorld. They’re typically short-handed as it is, so sending one of their Demon Slayers on a suicide mission is unthinkable.”

“Do you think maybe she was meant to be captured? You know, infiltrate our ranks and then return with info so they can launch a larger scale attack?” Delalo asked.

Mikaru shook his head. “No. This angel isn’t one of those types. If she were she’d be the best I have ever seen, hands down. Believe me, I’ve thought the same thing many times over these last few months, but there’s no way she was meant to be captured. She was sent here to take my head; nothing more and nothing less.”

“And yet she’s weaker than the last one.”

He breathed a heavy sigh. “Continue to observe her. There’s got to be a reason she was sent. Until then everyone needs to continue to lay low and do nothing to enrage her or make her uncomfortable. That goes for myself as well, of course. I’ve been sleeping with one eye open and I won’t stop doing so just because a few inches of ice over cold water caused her some grief.”

“Of course, Master. I’ll do as you say.”

“Good girl. Now hurry back to her before she suspects anything.”


	5. Mikaru's Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even a demon lord can fall in love. That doesn't mean he knows what to do about it. Thankfully he has a loving little sister who can offer him advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story of these two is actually a tragic one. But for now, things are quite happy.
> 
> Rating: M (for a brief scene)  
> Characters: Mikaru, Rain, Delalo

“So…when are you going to tell him how you feel?”

“Tell him?”

“Look, he’s pretty intelligent and all, but he’s not psychic. If you want him to know, you’re going to have to tell him yourself.”

“…I’m not sure I want to.”

“Why not? The way I see it you have two options here; remain stuck and hope your feelings will go away on their own like you’ve been doing, and we both know how well that’s been working, or tell him and go from there. What have you got to lose in telling him?”

“It isn’t about what I’ve got to lose, Delalo.”

“Okay, then let’s look at what you have to gain instead. If you tell him and he rejects your feelings, then you’ll finally have closure and can set to work on ridding yourself of them.”

“But what if he feels the same way?”

“Then you’ll have a new decision to make, won’t you? Best case scenario he doesn’t love you and you can move on with your life. Worst case you’re left mostly in the same spot you are now, but at least you’ll have something different to ponder. It’s a win-win.”

“I don’t think I would call it that myself.”

“Either is better than stressing about it so much that you come to me for advice.” The short demon girl breathed a sigh of exasperation. “I wish I had an easy answer for you. I really do. But there isn’t one. This is something you are ultimately going to have to figure out and decide on for yourself. All I can do is draw from my own experiences and try to think about what I would do in your shoes. Whether you want to tell him and get to moving on with your life or stay at a standstill and worry is up to you. I’m just saying I think it would be better to tell him.”

“You say that like telling him is easy.”

“It is! ‘I just thought I would let you know that I am in love with you.’ Simple.”

“You’re forgetting nervousness.”

“The most I can tell you for that is to suck it up and do it. Just like every other thing you’ve done for the first time.”

“Master! There you are, I’ve been looking for you!” Rain called out, hurrying towards him from the other end of the corridor.

“And look who it is… Seems we’re out of time here. Keero, as your minion I just want you to stop waffling. But as your sister I want to tell you to hurry up and make your decision. For _your_ sake. Okay?” Delalo sighed again. “I’ll talk to you later.” She nodded to Rain before leaving him and her brother alone.

“What was she talking about?” Rain asked.

“It’s not something you need to concern yourself with.” Mikaru mumbled, looking up at him. “Now, what did you want from me?”

“Huh? Oh! Oh right. I wanted to tell you that I met a pretty young lady while hunting in town last night and we’ve scheduled a date later this week.”

Mikaru raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Have you?”

“Yes. I just wanted to let you know. I’ve been thinking I should start trying to find a mate, you know? This is the first time a woman’s agreed to go out with me. I’m kind of nervous.” Rain laughed.

“You’re awfully young to be concerned about finding a mate.”

“I’m twenty-six. I think that’s plenty old enough.”

The demon man rolled his eyes. “Please, like that’s going to convince me you’re not still a child.”

“Would you rather I started dating women I meet while hunting, or would you prefer I kept spending most of my time with you?” Rain asked seriously. “Don’t get me wrong, I’ll always be willing to kiss you if you want me to, but it’s kind of pathetic of me to be practically hanging off of you all the time.”

_If only you knew…_ Mikaru thought to himself. “I suppose you have a point. In that case, I wish you the best of luck.” He smirked. “If things go wrong, I’m sure you know how to find me.”

The vampire’s face turned bright red. A rarity for the man to be so easily embarrassed. Mikaru had to take a moment to cherish the sight and nearly missed what Rain said in reply. “I don’t want to always rely on you, Master!”

Mikaru patted him on the shoulder. “I’m joking, Rain. I like that you’re so independent. But seriously, just because you’ve got yourself a lady friend now doesn’t mean you need to be a stranger.” He met Rain’s golden eyes and cast him a soft, fond smile. “I care too much about you to let you ignore me, okay?”

Rain carefully stepped out of Mikaru’s reach and avoided looking him in the eye. “I know.” He muttered. “And I couldn’t ignore you if I wanted to.”

***

If there was one thing Rain would change about Mikaru’s palace, it was that it was always so empty. Sure, there was the occasional servant that he would pass in the hallway, but other than that he never really saw anyone. Even on nice days where there would be people touring the gardens or first floor he felt like most of the place went unused. Many times he had to wonder why Mikaru had bothered to build his home so big, but he had never bothered to ask. He was worried he might be picking at an old wound if he did.

It wasn’t that he hated how quiet the palace was. On the contrary he very much liked that he could wander such a large area without being disturbed. The problem he had with it wasn’t so much about the place itself, but rather that it meant he had to actually go in to town in order to find somebody to prey upon. He couldn’t say he was a picky eater, as he enjoyed demon blood just fine and he would readily bite both men and women, but only consuming the blood of the same three people all the time got boring. If he wanted to spice up his meals, he had to travel out of his comfort zone and actually find somebody willing to get bitten. It wasn’t always the easiest of tasks.

He pushed the palace gate closed behind him and breathed yet another sigh. He had just come back from his second date with the woman he had met before. His stomach and taste buds were satisfied, but the date itself had ended poorly and it left him feeling empty. Sure, there were plenty like him who viewed others as nothing but food, and eating was typically as commonplace and boring for his kind as it was for any other species. But to Rain it felt weird. He had never viewed other sentient creatures as nothing more than a food source, even when he was desperate for a change of taste. Biting somebody that he was interested in? Now there was something he was more than willing to do. He wondered if maybe he wouldn’t be feeling so terribly if the date had ended well. He made a mental note not to bite somebody at the start of their date next time. Maybe then they wouldn’t accuse him of using them…

Sighing again, he began to make his way through the front gardens and towards the palace itself. He hoped that getting some sleep would make him feel less awful. He stopped, however, when his eyes fell upon a familiar figure lying on the grass. Surprised, he approached.

“Master? It’s unusual for you to be here and not on the roof.” Rain remarked, looking down upon the short man who was on his back and staring up at the starry sky.

“I didn’t feel like climbing up there.” Mikaru replied, glancing over at him. “Welcome back, by the way. How’d things go?”

“Thank you.” Rain replied. “And badly.”

The demon raised an eyebrow at him curiously.

“Somehow she got the idea that I was only seeing her so that I could drink her blood. I tried to tell her that that wasn’t the case, but she didn’t seem so convinced. It got to the point where she was hysterically demanding that if all I wanted was her body to just go ahead and do her or drain all of her blood, or both. I had to hypnotize and put her to sleep just to get away from her.”

The demon snickered. “You’re terrible, treating a lady like an object like that.”

“I’d feel worse if I’d obliged her!” Rain shouted. “I mean, I can’t even say with certainty that I wanted to have sex with her. Most of the time we spent together…well if I’m honest it wasn’t great.”

“Will there ever come a day where you can say with certainty that you love a woman?”

Rain’s face twisted a little as he contemplated the question. “I think so. At least, the thought of being with a woman doesn’t disgust me. It just so happens that she was not somebody I had a whole lot in common with.”

Again Mikaru laughed. He lazily reached beside him and patted the grass. “Come join me. The sky is nice and clear tonight, maybe it’ll help you relax.”

Rain sat down beside his master. He leaned back on his hands and gazed up at the stars. As the demon had said, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky to obstruct a single celestial body. The sky glistened with stars, and Rain stared in awe at the vastness of it all. He wasn’t one to stargaze, but even he had to admit that sitting there on the grass, in the gentle night breeze, beside his master, and beneath the beautiful sky…it was nice. It was times like those that he was happy that the palace was so quiet. He doubted he would have gotten a chance to do something so pleasant if things were more chaotic.

“I’ve been thinking…” Mikaru suddenly spoke, startling Rain just a little. “I’d like to find some more people to serve as my minions…but I’m not really sure how I should go about doing that.”

“Whatever you do, please do not go and kidnap more children.” Rain muttered.

Mikaru shook his head. “Nah. That worked twice; I don’t want to push my luck. Besides, I don’t actually know what I’d do with more of you. I’m pretty content with my territories, and any disputes I can typically settle by myself. Three is more than plenty. I guess I’m just a bit of a collector.”

The demon fell silent again after that, so Rain went back to staring up at the sky. For all its beauty and how pleasant the moment was he was beginning to feel bored. He really could not understand how somebody could stay and look at the distant lights for hours on end. Despite that, he couldn’t bring himself to stand up and go inside. He didn’t want to just leave his master so abruptly like that. His eyes fell onto the demon again.

“Master, may I make a request of you?”

Mikaru raised an eyebrow. “Depends on what it is.”

“I want you to kiss me.”

A smirk crossed the short demon’s face. For moment Rain thought he was about to get teased, since he had been so adamant about not relying on Mikaru not too long ago. Instead Mikaru reached out and grabbed the collar of Rain’s shirt. With a swift yank, Rain was nearly pulled completely on top of the smaller man. He was thankfully allowed half a moment to prop himself up with a forearm on either side of Mikaru’s head before the demon wrapped his arms around Rain’s shoulders and pulled him down again, pressing their lips together messily.

_Yes,_ the vampire thought, _this is what I’ve been missing._

***

“I’ve made up my mind.”

“Oh really? Do tell.”

“I’m not going to tell him until I know how he feels about me.”

Delalo groaned and laid her face in her hands. “You don’t say… Let me guess, you have no idea how to go about learning how he feels about you without directly asking him. Am I correct?”

Mikaru hung his head. “You’re right.”

“Well fortunately for you, I actually have an idea of how to go about something like that! And you must have hit the lottery, because I can guarantee to you that it is something you can and are willing to do: just kiss him.”

The short demon stared at his younger sister skeptically. “Delalo, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve kissed him plenty of times and I still don’t know how he feels.”

Delalo flicked him lightly on the forehead. “That’s because you haven’t been paying attention to him when you do. I know you; when you kiss somebody you’re more focused on how it feels than how your partner is feeling. So this time have him kiss you and actually pay attention to how he reacts.”

***

It wasn’t unusual for Mikaru to flag down Rain if they happened to catch a glimpse of each other in the palace. In the seventeen years Rain had known him, Mikaru had never been shy about approaching him. Even when Rain had still been seething with anger and thoughts of revenge, Mikaru had regarded him with kindness and patience and had offered him his friendship. So Rain thought nothing of it when Mikaru called Rain to his side from across the storeroom.

“What can I do for you?” Rain asked him cheerfully.

“Kiss me.” Mikaru stated.

Sure, it wasn’t typical of his master to be so straightforward, but it would hardly have been the first time they’d kissed and Rain wasn’t in the mood to question it. He laid a hand on Mikaru’s shoulder and leaned down and touch their lips together in a light peck. He was only marginally surprised when Mikaru wrapped his arms around his shoulders and pulled him closer. They parted their lips from each other by the smallest amount, but not even a second passed before the demon lord kissed him again, this time swiping his tongue across Rain’s bottom lip. Not being one to deny his master, Rain met his tongue with his own.

Their kiss was brief, and the two laid their foreheads together for a moment while they each took a deep breath. Mikaru was the first to open his eyes, and at first thought it odd that he still didn’t know what to make of what just happened. His sister had been so certain, and he really had paid attention. To him it felt like Rain had simply gone through the motions of it all. He was half a second away from determining that Rain did not in fact feel the same way about him when he noticed the tiniest of smiles on the vampire’s lips.

_Oh…_ Mikaru thought. _I get it now…_

“So is that all?” Rain asked him, bringing him out of his thoughts.

“Yeah… Yeah, that’s it. Thanks.” Mikaru said. Only after he turned and left Rain did he realize how weird their parting was…and how panicked he felt by the results of his test.

***

“Master, I mean no offence but it’s a little strange that you keep wanting to kiss me.” Rain stated.

Since Mikaru had come to understand how the vampire felt about him, Mikaru couldn’t help it. Every time he laid eyes on the vampire man he wanted to kiss him. So despite his better judgement, he did. After only a week it had become Mikaru’s new favorite way to greet him, and Rain obliged him every time, and happily at that. But seven days of such a thing happening had become cause for concern for Rain and he felt he had to voice it.

“How so?” Mikaru asked.

“I… I don’t know. But if I’m honest it’s starting to send the wrong idea. So I was thinking I should tell you that before it becomes a problem.”

“The wrong idea?”

“Master I don’t want you to kiss me only for my sake. Although I enjoy it, I don’t want you to force yourself to do something you don’t like.”

Mikaru gaped at him, completely floored. Did Rain really not understand? Surely that couldn’t actually be the case. Although Delalo had warned him that Rain wouldn’t have any way to know. Even when the gears in his head slowly began to turn again, he still had no idea what to say or do about the situation. So he laughed. It was the deep, heartfelt sort of laugh that made him double over clutching his stomach with tears in his eyes. Now it was Rain’s turn to stare in confusion.

“You idiot!” the demon lord cried out. “I can’t believe you. I really can’t! How are you so dense?” he was running out of breath and had to take a long pause in order to gather himself again. As he calmed down, taking deep breathes between small fits, he wiped at his eyes to clear them. “You really don’t know… Then again, I can’t say I’m much better. I myself first had to get advice, and even then I haven’t been able to say it clearly myself.”

He breathed another deep breath and leveled his gaze with the vampire’s. “I love you, Rain. I really, and truly do. I’m not just kissing you for your sake, I’m doing it because I want to. I’m doing it because I feel that if I loved you any more than I do I’d burst!” For the second time in a very short while Mikaru had the opportunity to see Rain turn beet red. If showing his love to Rain meant he got more opportunities to see him flustered, then perhaps telling him really was the way to go. Mikaru draped his arms over the vampire’s shoulders and gently pulled him closer. “I really, really love you.”

Slowly, hesitantly, as if wondering if he were dreaming what was happening, Rain raised his own arms and wrapped them about the demon’s waist. He swallowed thickly and smiled almost shyly. “I… I love you too, Master.” There was a moment of silence wherein they allowed themselves to bask in the glow of getting their feelings off their chests. Every nerve in their bodies begged them to just enjoy the moment of bliss; to not think about how problematic their being in love would be. It was Rain who eventually asked in a low voice the question neither of them was prepared to answer. “So, now what?”

It was certainly a loaded question, and the one Mikaru had been dreading ever since he first began to wonder if Rain returned his feelings. He lowered his own voice to answer. “I don’t know. Besides the obvious, I also do not know where to go from here even as far as a normal relationship would go. I’ve never been in love before.”

The vampire raised an eyebrow at him. “Don’t you have a daughter?”

“Rain let me enlighten you about something: you don’t need to be in love to have sex with somebody.”

“Right… So neither of us knows what to do about… _this_ …and neither of us knows what a normal couple would do at this point either.”

“That about sums it up.” There was a beat before Mikaru smiled at him again, and when he spoke it was in a much more upbeat tone. He hoped that would make it obvious to Rain that he wanted to change the subject. “I’ve been thinking I should get a bath this afternoon. Care to lend me a hand?”

Rain easily picked up on what he was trying to do, and what he suggested made his cheeks turn a little pink again. He grinned. “Are you asking me if I want to see you naked? Because yes!”


	6. A Strange Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kamakazi is an angel who has had misfortune after misfortune brought upon her from a very young age. At the young age of twelve she is already a single, orphaned mother. She's not in any mood or situation to take in a stray, but she does owe Kiko a favor and he makes her a convincing argument...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: T  
> Characters: Kamakazi, Kiko, Rick, Keyontay

Heaving her tiny baby from one arm to the other, Kamakazi dug through her pocket for her house key. She hadn’t been able to get a babysitter, and she thanked God that she was strong enough to carry both a bag of groceries and a three month old all the way from the store to her house. As she put the key in the lock and turned it, she prayed she would have enough next month to afford a decent stroller. She turned the doorknob and stepped into her little house.

After retrieving the key from the lock, she realized the lights were on. Great. She hadn’t been gone much more than half an hour, but even that was wasted energy…and money. She reached to turn them off when an increasingly familiar redhead stepped out from her kitchen.

“There you are!” he cried out happily, approaching her with a grin. Kamakazi frowned.

“Kiko! If you’re going to break into my house, at least have the decency to come in _before_ I leave so I have somebody to leave Key with!” She cried out.

Kiko stopped in his tracks, momentarily puzzled before he realized she had a wriggly bundle in her arms. His eyes sparkled and he hurried forward to take her groceries from her and to get a better look at the baby.

“So you really had her!” he said softly, poking the little girl on her soft cheek. “She’s so cute…”

“Kiko…” Kamakazi grumbled warningly. “Why are you here? I’m grateful for what you did for me, but I can’t have the neighbors seeing you breaking into my house!”

Kiko set the grocery bag down beside the kitchen doorway. He glanced out the windows briefly, just long enough to confirm that her small house was covered in greenery and her property lined with trees. And through them, he saw not a single house for what would be several city blocks. He snickered and grinned up at her.

“What neighbors?” changing the subject, he shifted his attention back to her baby. “So what’s the little one’s name?”

Kamakazi rolled her eyes. “I’m serious, a demon in the OverWorld is a huge problem.” she let out an exasperated sigh and looked down at her daughter. “…Her name is Keyontay. Her father’s still at large, but they’ve been able to learn a few thing about him because of her. Apparently she’s not his only child, either, but I haven’t yet met the other girl. Our schedules haven’t been able to match up yet.”

The small demon nodded knowingly. Meeting with another person who only shares something like _that_ in common with you must be hard to do, even if schedules allowed for it. Feeling the mood turning heavy, he decided again that the subject should be changed. He knew what it was he wanted to talk to her about, but suddenly he wasn’t sure now was a good time to bring it up. Much to his fortune, be it good or bad, Kamakazi spoke up before he could decide.

“So why exactly are you here? Last time I saw you was seven weeks before I gave birth.”

“Oh…right…about that…” Kiko’s eyes quickly glanced towards the kitchen. “I…have a huge favor to ask of you.” The angel narrowed her eyes at him distrustfully. “I want you to look after somebody for me.”

“I assume it’s a demon?” the angel asked bitterly. Kiko could only nod regretfully. Kamakazi groaned loudly in frustration. “Kiko, no! You _know_ I can’t do something like that! Aside from the fact that you are asking me, an angel, to look after a demon in the OverWorld, there’s dozens of problems with that!”

Kiko cringed, having fully expected her to say no, but not for her to be so angry and to go off at him so loudly.

“First of all, I have baby now! I can’t just do whatever I want. I’m not just living for myself anymore, I _have_ to take care of her! And thanks to a certain incident before I got pregnant, I can’t work anymore. As it is, I am thankful that my previous job has benefits for people like me who get seriously injured. If it’s found out that I am even talking to you right now, let alone if somebody found out I was harboring a demon full-time, those benefits could be taken away from me in an instant! Then what am I supposed to do?! It’s hard enough to make ends meet as it is. On top of bills, I have a little mouth here I need to feed, and I’m seeing two different therapists for two different problems twice a month each. That isn’t cheap. You expect me to be able to pay for all of that _and_ another person?”

While she was shouting, she set her baby down on the sofa in order to free up her hands. Despite how loud and angry she was, Keyontay remained silent, and even looked like she was about to fall asleep. For his part, Kiko waited patiently for the angel to get everything out of her system. He felt guilty, knowing full well that what he was asking of her was unfair, but he was still determined to ask it of her anyway. When she finally stopped her shouting, Kiko gave her a few seconds to breathe before he spoke again.

“Kamakazi, believe me, I wouldn’t be asking this of you if I had any other option. I know you are stressed and have a lot of worries. Very real ones. But please just hear me out. This person, he really needs somewhere safe to be right now, and I can’t think of anywhere safer for him than the OverWorld. And you’re the only angel I can trust not to rat him out. I know we demons shouldn’t be trusted, and that I am risking yours and your baby’s livelihoods by doing this, but I _promise_ , harboring this person won’t make you lose your benefits even if he is seen. Please, before you say no, at least meet him.” He pleaded.

The angel stared him down momentarily before drawing a deep breath and rubbing her forehead with one hand. Kiko held his breath, hoping for the best and expecting the worst.

“…Okay. Alright. I’ll meet him. Let me guess; he’s in the kitchen right now.”

Kiko glanced that way again. “How did you know?”

“Why else would you have taken my groceries from me and not gone in there, but stayed in my living room to talk to me?”

She had a point, the demon had to admit. Silently, he motioned for her to follow him and the two stepped into the kitchen. Immediately Kamakazi gasped, her eyes falling onto the small figure sitting at her table in the corner. She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting, but the boy was not at all it. He was young. Terribly young. Perhaps no more than four or five. His skin was pale, and there was not a sign of horns, a tail, or even claws on him. Kamakazi’s mouth hung open.

“Kiko…are you blind? This boy is-”

“A demon.” Kiko assured her. “More specifically he’s a White Demon.”

“A what?”

“I’m not surprised you don’t know what those are, the OverWorld hardly ever feels the need to acknowledge them, let alone send one of their personnel to deal with them. They’re…they’re not like the rest of us, as you can tell. White Demons are fallen angels, or are descendants of them. The OverWorld probably doesn’t want to admit that some of their angels have turned, so that’s why most have never heard of them, or at least don’t know the UnderWorld’s name for them.”

“He’s so young…” Kamakazi whispered.

“He’s older than you. He’s a bit more than three hundred.” Kiko corrected.

“And his name?”

“Rick.”

“That’s it?”

Kiko shook his head. “You don’t need to know the rest of it.”

Kamakazi glanced at him quizzically before drawing another breath and finally addressing the boy, who had been completely silent this whole time, directly. “Rick, I assume you heard everything I said in the other room?” The boy nodded. “Then I assume you understand the dangers of me taking you in.”

“I do.” He said quietly. “If it’s too much trouble, I’ll go elsewhere. You don’t need to endanger yourself and your daughter for me.” He smiled up at Kamakazi gently. “You’re so young, yet already you’re trying so hard to be an adult for your baby. It won’t trouble me to have to seek refuge somewhere else.”

The angel sighed, and thought to herself for a few seconds. Finally, she met his eyes again and spoke seriously. “Would you be willing and able to pretend that you are an angel?”

“If that is what it would take for you to shelter me, than yes.”

Kamakazi turned her attention to Kiko. “How long will this be for?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. It’s largely up to Rick. Firstly he needs a safe place to stay until things settle down enough for him to return to his home in the UnderWorld, or until he is able to handle himself down there.” There was a moment of silence and Kiko quickly added, “I’ll come by every so often to help you out. I don’t know how much I’ll be able to do for you, but I’ve helped raise my little brother, so you can trust Keyontay with me for a little while so you can have time to yourself. Or I might be able to do odd jobs while I’m away to help you make ends meet. Please, just do this for me!”

Once more the young angel breathed a deep breathe. “Okay… Okay. Rick, if you will pretend to be an angel, and if Kiko will help me pay the bills, and if both of you will help me with raising Keyontay, then I will do this for you two. But if either of you cause me problems I will get rid of you both in a heartbeat. Understood?”

Both demon’s eyes widened in joy. Kiko threw his arms around Kamakazi’s waist, hugging her tightly. Rick slid off of the chair he had been sitting on and bowed deeply to her.

“Thank you so much!” both cried out.

*****

Six years later, Keyontay walked home hand-in-hand with Rick. He often met her at school to walk her home, and she was always happy to go with him. As far as she was concerned, the young demon had always been in her life. She wasn’t even in any position to wonder why a demon was living with her and her mom. Rick just was, and that was all that mattered.

When they got to her house and started walking up the front steps, the door flew open in front of them.

“Welcome back!” Kiko called out to them with a grin.

Keyontay let out a shriek of joy and bounced up into his arms, kissing him on the cheek. “Kiko! You’re here!” she shouted happily.

“Yep. I’ve come to visit again.” He laughed. Before he could say hello to Rick, the boy pressed himself to his side, hugging him tightly. Kiko smiled and ruffled his hair. “Hello to you, too.”

“Are they home?” Kamakazi called from somewhere upstairs. “Tell Rick that his laundry’s ready to be folded!”

Rick whined and pulled away from Kiko just a little bit. “Coming…” he muttered, just barely loud enough for her to hear before slowly stepping inside.

Kiko carried the little girl inside, closing the door behind him. No sooner had the latch clicked than Keyontay launched into excitedly telling him about what she had learned that day, Kiko listening to her intently.

Truly they had become quite the strange little family.


	7. Alone with the King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just because a white demon was raised by an angel does not mean he cannot be in a position of power. On top of that, just because another demon helped to raise him does not mean he cannot try to engage in a little physical intimacy with that demon. Now if only they could stop getting interrupted!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This takes place at least 15 years after the end of the previous chapter. Meaning everyone is of age. THAT SAID~~~
> 
> Rating: M  
> Characters: Kiko, Rick

Rick stretched his arms high above his head, leaning back in his chair as he sat at his desk. He heaved a sigh and got to his feet. He had been reading all afternoon and was quite tired of it. He still had a lot more work to be done, but he felt it was time for a break. After all, there was only one person who would actually pressure him to hurry, and she wasn’t around. As if sensing he was in need of a distraction, a knock came at his study door.

“Your Majesty, are you free?”

“I am, come in.” Rick called out.

The door opened, and a fairly short man entered. As soon as he had closed the door behind him, he grinned brightly up at the king.

“How did I know you would be getting bored right about now?”

Rick smiled back at him. “You know me too well, that’s why.” He took a step towards the short demon, and the man wasted no time in closing the distance between them and hugging Rick tightly. “Let me guess, you came to bother me.”

“Of course I did! I get bored, too.” He looked up at Rick and frowned. “I grew up here in this castle, you know. I know every nook and cranny of this place already, exploring isn’t very fun.”

“You could do other things.”

“I could, but that isn’t the point.” He reached up and placed a hand on Rick’s cheek. “The queen is away for a few days, isn’t she? And she’s taken Melody with her. So why not enjoy yourself a little, hm?”

Rick turned his head and kissed the palm of his hand. “So that’s what you’re getting at, Kiko. You don’t need to be so subtle with me. At least, not when we’re alone like this. The rest of the castle doesn’t need to know the king is sleeping with his knight.”

Kiko smirked. “Alright, then let me try that again. I want to fuck you, my king.”

Rick hooked a finger under the short demon’s chin, not that he needed to coax him into making eye contact. “Oh, so close. Try that again.” He whispered.

“You’re being a tease, Rick. Lean down here so I can kiss you already.”

With only a chuckle, Rick did just that. He leaned down to meet Kiko’s eager lips. The shorter demon wrapped his arms about the king’s shoulders, pulling him closer. The king hummed happily and rest his hands on Kiko’s hips. The two shared a few simple, tender kisses before leaning their foreheads together momentarily. In the second of silence, Kiko couldn’t help the bubble of laughter that occurred.

“And what just went through your mind?” Rick inquired.

“I’m just finding it odd that the two people I have been involved with most recently are so similar to each other in the way they prefer to have sex.” Kiko replied. The king quirked an eyebrow.

“Who might the other person be?”

Kiko shook his head a little. “You don’t want to know right now. I’ll tell you later.”

Rick frowned briefly, but then kissed him again. “I’ll take your word for it.”

Suddenly there was another knock at the door. The two men groaned softly and took a step apart. Rick cleared his throat and called out for whoever it was to enter. A servant entered with a letter, and before he could explain where it came from, Rick ordered him to leave. Bewildered, the servant bowed and left quickly. Rick checked the seal on the envelope before tossing it onto his desk.

“A message from a certain lord we’re both well acquainted with. I think his letter can wait.” Rick told a curious and waiting Kiko. “Now where were we?”

Instead of answering with his words, Kiko grabbed him by the collar and pulled him down again so their lips would meet. He knew Rick was fine with being a little rough, and he was eager to get back into it. Luckily for him, the king hummed again and was quick to reciprocate. After a few seconds, one of them parted their lips and the other hungrily brought their tongues into the action. The quiet room was soon filled with sighs, pants, and pleased groans.

Kiko’s hands raised and he buried his fingers into Rick’s hair, gripping as tightly as he dared with one hand and running the long strands through the other. Rick pulled Kiko closer by his hips, almost lifting him off of his feet in the process. Just as Kiko’s teeth found the king’s lower lip and began nipping at it, there came another knock at the door. The two cursed silently and untangled themselves from each other. Rick took a deep breath before telling the servant to enter.

The maid was a little surprised to see her king with his hair a bit tousled, but she quickly informed him that his dinner was nearly ready. Rick thanked her and she left quickly. Just as soon as the door closed behind her, Kiko grabbed the king by the wrist and nearly threw him onto a rarely-used sofa before climbing onto him, straddling his lap. Rick let out a small cry of surprise, and the short demon silenced any protest he might have had by resuming their kiss right where it had been interrupted. The king groaned appreciatively as Kiko accompanied his kisses by finding the hem of his shirt and slipping his hands beneath it. Easily getting right back into it, Rick tugged the back of Kiko’s shirt up and ran his own hands along his back.

Their breaths became shorter and faster, and it was Kiko who decided it was time to start being rid of their clothing. Rick didn’t fight it as the short demon stripped him of his shirt entirely before removing his own. Both articles were discarded somewhere on the floor. Now without the cloth barriers, their hands were free to roam all the more. Kiko’s fingertip pinched and rolled one of Rick’s nipples, and the king couldn’t help it as his nails dug into the short demon’s hips, leaving the smallest of scratches. Amused by Rick’s reactions, Kiko abandoned his lips and kissed his way over to his ear, choosing to nip and suck on it instead. Rick moaned, bucking his hips up into his partner in thanks.

“I want to mark you.” Kiko breathed into his ear.

“Jewel is going to see it if you do.” Rick reminded his knight.

Kiko rolled his hips down onto Rick, both of their erections becoming painfully obvious. “If she doesn’t know we’re fooling around by now, that’s her problem. We’ve been doing this long before you became king and took her as your queen.”

Without another word, Rick turned his head aside, letting Kiko do as he pleased. The short demon’s teeth found the tender flesh at the base of his neck, biting sharply without drawing blood before licking and sucking at the spot. All the while he kept on with the slow, lazy grinding of his hips that pressed their erections into each other. Rick panted and moaned without concern of how loud he was being. Kiko loved it. Rick wasn’t necessarily the reserved type, but the knight still found it intoxicating to hear him moaning with such reckless abandon.

Kiko released his throat and eyed the blossoming bruise he had succeeded in leaving. He grinned at the thought of Rick having to go through the trouble of hiding it from the servants for the next several days. After all, if the queen was gone then who was left to have their way with Rick? The king shook Kiko from his thoughts by bringing his lips to one of his nipples. The knight groaned, leaning back to give him better access and being thankful that Rick’s hands were at his back to support him. With a hand shaking from arousal, Kiko fumbled with the button of Rick’s pants until he managed to undo it. Rick trailed his mouth down Kiko’s body, tongue quickly dipping into his belly button.

And yet another knock interrupted their fun.

“Oh for the love of-” Rick growled, moving to stand up. Kiko pressed against his chest, trying to convince him to ignore it, but Rick removed his hands and made him stand before getting to his feet as well. Kiko bent down and fetched Rick’s shirt, offering it to him. Rick brushed it aside and approached the door.

The king quickly pulled the door open, caring not at all for his unclothed and disheveled state. “What?!” he snarled.

The servant stared at him, mouth agape and eyes wide. His messed up hair, flushed face, bruised lips, the forming hickey, shirtless torso, unbuttoned pants, and of course his straining erection had clearly caught the poor man off guard. To make matters worse, Rick did not even try to hide the rest of the room, and it was all too easy to spot Kiko in an equally messy state sitting on the edge of the sofa’s arm. The servant shook his head and looked Rick in the eyes as best as he could, blushing deeply as he realized what he had just interrupted.

“U-um… Your food is ready. It um…”

“Speak up!” Rick snapped. “You have five seconds to finish your thought.”

“I-it is waiting for you in the gardens!” the servant said quickly before turning to leave. Rick caught him by the arm and glared down at him as he looked back in confusion.

“I do not wish to be disturbed until tomorrow morning. I don’t care who you have to inform, but know that if it happens _again_ the lot of you will be sorry.” Rick told him sharply. The man nodded and ran down the hall the moment he was released. Rick slammed the door shut and turned back to Kiko.

The short demon released a moan and leaned back as Rick closed the distance between them and captured his lips again. “That has got to be the sexiest thing I have ever seen you do.” He breathed.

“Everyone has their limits, though I am probably going to regret that in about an hour.” Rick replied, quickly getting the both of them back into it, and with a far more needy rhythm than before.


	8. More Fun Ice Activities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Early on in their relationship. Que-nu learns that Aurora is good at many things to do with ice. Including having sex on top of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for some good 'ol fashioned buttsex!
> 
> Rating: E  
> Characters: Aurora, Que-nu

It was cold, stupidly cold. The underground cavern that housed the frozen lake that had become a skating rink was always, always well below freezing. Que-nu breathed out a slow breath, not at all paying attention to the way it immediately turned into fog. He was enthralled in the scene before him. The man on the ice was breathtaking. Every movement, every jump, every spin, all of it drew Que-nu in. It didn’t matter to him that the man was only fooling around and doing whatever amused himself in that moment, the phoenix couldn’t tear his eyes away from him for even a second. He leaned forward onto the wall at the side of the rink and despite himself let out a very soft gasp.

The man glanced towards him, a little bit startled. He cast him a quick smile before returning to what he was doing. For a moment Que-nu wondered if he would change up what he was doing now that he knew he had an audience, but no, he only continued to leisurely skate about on the lake’s frozen surface. The phoenix didn’t mind. Aurora’s skating was plenty amazing to watch even as it was. It was far from the first time Que-nu had witnessed him doing what he loved, but that didn’t make the simple things any less impressive to him. After all, he and Aurora were still getting to know each other.

Aurora came to a stop and breathed out a sigh. His breathing was only marginally elevated, and only the slightest sheen of sweat coated his skin. He stretched his arms far above his head, and in the silence of the room Que-nu could hear the unmistakable popping of his joints. It was accompanied by a pleased grunt and sigh as he relaxed and skated over to the wall to join his companion. He rested his elbows on the top of the wall, laced his fingers together, and dropped his chin on them. He gazed up at Que-nu, a simple smile playing at his lips.

“Enjoy the view?” he teased.

The phoenix’s eyes drifted over the demon’s body. His form-fitting clothing left little to the imagination, especially when it clung even more to his every muscle and curve due to sweat. Que-nu’s eyes lingered on his waist, hips, and backside that was sticking out just a little due to his leaning over. When the phoenix looked back up to meet the demon’s eyes, the man’s smile had turned into something resembling a smirk.

“I’m still enjoying it.” The phoenix answered truthfully. If being involved with Aurora had taught him anything, it was that being honest with the man about what he liked usually led to even better things.

The demon snickered. “Look all you like, then. I’m a performer; I’d be upset if my audience _didn’t_ look.”

Que-nu’s eyes fell again and they slowly traced the shape of the man’s legs. If anything, he greatly enjoyed that the man had no shame. In fact, he was certain if he asked it that Aurora would be entirely willing to lose what little clothing he had on and would skate in the nude. It wasn’t like the demon was actually affected by the extreme temperature of the room any, and the phoenix was fairly certain the word “modesty” was not in his vocabulary. As Que-nu’s eyes reached his skates, they quickly fell to the ice he was still standing on. He blinked curiously, an unexpected thought occurring to him.

“So…strange question, but how many people have you fucked on this ice?” he asked.

A bubble of laughter escaped Aurora. “You ask that like you know I’ve done it!”

“Wait, you haven’t?!” Que-nu shouted, genuinely shocked.

Aurora laughed again, laying his cheek against one of his palms as he counted on his newly freed hand. His lips moved soundlessly as he thought back to who he had taken on the ice. His fingers stopped at three being raised and his face twisted as he stared at them.

“That’s strange, I could have sworn it would have been more.” The demon stated, sounding as surprised as Que-nu felt about the number being so low. He recounted, but it came up the exact same. “Well, looks like there’s still room for improvement. Something is quite unusual for a question like that to be answered with one hand.” He admitted, casting another smirk towards the phoenix.

Without warning the demon brought his fingers to his lips, and with his eyes still focused on Que-nu’s, peeked his tongue out to taste the length of a single digit. The phoenix let out a slow, shuddering breath as his eyes took in the slight movement of Aurora’s tongue. He would be lying if he were to say he weren’t just a little turned on from watching Aurora skate, but seeing him do something like this was all the more enticing. He had seen that same tongue do far more vulgar things in the past, had been on the receiving end of that tongue doing far more vulgar things, and even if just for a moment Que-nu couldn’t help but remember exactly what those things were.

“So…” Aurora’s eyes narrowed dangerously and his smirk turned mischievous. “Care to add another to the count?”

The phoenix had to clear his throat in order to speak. “That depends. What sort of thing are we talking?”

The demon’s free hand found one of Que-nu’s, his thumb rubbing the back of it gently. He stood upright, bringing his lips close to the phoenix’s ear and exhaling slowly over it, causing him to shiver at the warmth. “I suppose if you want me to be specific I could tell you that I would absolutely _love_ to see you cum on the ice.” He purred. His hand traced up the length of Que-nu’s arm, his fingers ghosting across his shoulder and neck before gently cupping his cheek. “Down on your knees, helpless and begging me to touch you.” Que-nu let out another shaky breath, his eyes slipping closed. “The real question is: how should I take you?” Aurora continued, his tongue tracing the shell of his ear. “My mouth?” his free hand snaked its way around the phoenix’s hip and squeezed his butt. “My hand? Or perhaps…” His lips moved, leaving a trail of wet kisses across his jaw until they just barely met Que-nu’s. “…you would prefer my dick?”

The phoenix didn’t even try to hide how much he was putty in Aurora’s hands as he leaned further into the man’s touches. The wall between them was rapidly becoming the most frustrating obstacle in history. Wordlessly he managed to pull away long enough to kick his shoes and socks off and to climb over the offending barrier. Aurora snickered and wasted no time in wrapping his arms around Que-nu’s waist to bring their lower halves together. Que-nu hummed appreciatively, and silently marveled at Aurora being taller than him due to the demon’s skates. His own arms wound their way around Aurora’s neck, fingers slipping into his hair and pulling the band holding his ponytail free. He smirked at the way the white tresses now fell around and across his shoulders, loose and perfect for lacing his fingers into and gripping tightly.

“I don’t care how you go about it, but know this; if you do not fuck me _hard_ into this ice, I will hurt you.” As if he needed to further spell things out, he ground his half-hard erection against Aurora’s thigh. His action earned him a small intake of breath from the other man, and it wasn’t difficult to feel the other man’s arousal against him as well.

Certainly needing no further encouragement, Aurora’s hand found the hem of Que-nu’s shirt and the man relinquished the article of clothing without argument. Finally their lips met properly, both finding the different angle they were working with to be an interesting touch. Their kisses were quick, but hungry. They were just a little experimental, figuring out exactly how best to work with the inch or so between them that normally were not there. When they finally decided on what they liked best, both opened their mouths simultaneously. Their tongues met eagerly, alternating between inviting the other’s in to explore and memorizing the other’s mouth. Que-nu couldn’t help the moan that was pulled from his throat as Aurora retreated only to catch his lower lip between his teeth. He had always loved the way the other man tasted from the moment he first had, even if they weren’t on the most agreeable of terms at the time. Judging solely by the way the demon took every opportunity to taste him and sink his teeth into him, Aurora felt similarly.

The phoenix was surprised when Aurora abandoned his mouth without having broken the skin on either his tongue or lips. It wasn’t hard at all to determine just how much the taste of blood turned the demon on, and so such occasions where he wouldn’t bite Que-nu were fairly rare. He was fully expecting to feel the familiar piercing pain of his fangs sinking into his neck when Aurora’s lips traveled down. No such thing happened, instead all he felt was a very eager tongue lavishing his chilled skin. Que-nu breathed deeply, tilting his head to the side and fingers sliding down the demon’s chest. He found the bottom of Aurora’s shirt and toyed with the warm flesh just beneath. His action was rewarded with a kiss to the junction of his neck and shoulder.

“Rory…” he whispered, “More.”

He could feel the man’s smirk against his skin. He felt pressure against his shoulders and slowly sat down upon the cold surface beneath them. Aurora followed him down, kneeling between his legs. Now they were at an angle they knew well, and the demon wasted no time in bringing his lips to one of Que-nu’s nipples. The phoenix breathed deeply, suppressing a gasp. His eyes squeezed shut and he felt Aurora abandon what he was doing to press a finger to his lips.

“Don’t be shy, now. I want to hear _everything_.” Aurora whispered, replacing his finger with his mouth. Que-nu groaned into the kiss, his hands sliding fully beneath the demon’s shirt and splaying out on his abdomen. “That’s better. Just like that.”

Aurora allowed Que-nu to remove his shirt before resuming his work on the phoenix’s chest. The man gasped as the demon sucked one of his nipples. The demon’s hands ran firmly up and down his sides, bringing warmth to the skin that would otherwise be covered in goosebumps due to the biting cold. The phoenix’s nails dug into Aurora’s hips and dragged their way to the small of his back. With no more than a single tug, the demon laid on top of him, their erections brought together again, even if only briefly. Aurora’s mouth found its way further down the man beneath him, tongue dipping into his navel before teasing the skin just above his pants. He planted a kiss there and glanced up at Que-nu’s face.

The man was panting and watching him intently. The corners of the phoenix’s lips pulled upwards when they locked eyes.

“It’s not enough.” Que-nu murmured.

“Well then, I should be doing something about that, now shouldn’t I?” Aurora asked.

He bowed his head again and made a show of unbuttoning his pants and drawing down the zipper with his teeth. Without needing to be asked, Que-nu raised his hips and allowed the man to remove his pants entirely. His erection stood proudly beneath his boxers, the head threatening to peek out through the opening in the front. Aurora’s tongue drew across his lips and fangs as he took in the sight. That same tongue found the tender skin of Que-nu’s inner thigh, and the phoenix balled his fist in the demon’s white locks. He threw his head back and panted heavily as some of his most sensitive flesh was teased mercilessly.

“Rory…Rory…!” he breathed over and over. A moan tore itself from him as the demon’s fangs grazed his skin, barely enough to leave a scratch. “I want…I…” it was quickly becoming apparently that speech was becoming beyond Que-nu’s abilities. Still, Aurora didn’t cut him any slack. He brushed the fabric of his boxers far up his thigh, tongue teasing the sliver of skin between he leg and his dick, his cheek barely brushing the needy appendage in the process. A loud gasp echoed around the empty, frigid room, causing Aurora to snicker.

“Please, Rory! Fuck me already!” Que-nu finally begged, the smallest of tears managing to form at the corners of his eyes that were squeezed shut.

Aurora raised his head and arched an eyebrow at the phoenix. “You wouldn’t happen to have anything for me to use, would you?”

It took a few seconds for the words to be processed inside the phoenix’s lust-hazed mind. Slowly he raised a shaky hand and made a vague attempt at pointing to his pants that were crumpled up a foot away from them. Aurora needed no further instruction. He hoisted himself up onto his knees again and dug through both pockets until he found the bottle of lube. Recognition flashed across his features and he let out a groan.

“You have no idea…” he began, his smirk wide enough to show all eight of his fangs in their entirety as he spoke. The expression sent a shiver down Que-nu’s spine that pooled into heat at his crotch. “…how much the fact that you not only carry this around, but that it is my favorite kind, turns me on!”

“Then show me…” the phoenix challenged, the few seconds’ lack of contact being just enough for him to be able to articulate the simple sentence.

Not skipping a beat, Aurora finally untied his skates and set them aside. He straightened himself up on his knees, hooking his fingers into the waist of his pants. With another lick to his lips and fangs, eyes ever locked onto Que-nu’s, he drew down both his pants and underwear. His length was as hard as the phoenix had ever seen, and was dripping with precum already. As the man eyed the appendage before him, he suddenly felt his mouth and throat going dry. He closed his mouth, unaware he had even opened it, and swallowed with excitement as he looked back up at Aurora.

“Still not enough.” He breathed.

“You are certainly needy today.” Aurora told him playfully.

“You’re the one who wants me to beg.”

The demon hummed, having nothing to say in defense to that. “Get on your knees. I don’t want a single drop to miss its target.” He instructed.

Que-nu obeyed, turning over carefully onto his hands and knees. After a moment’s pause, he lowered his chest to the frigid ice, drawing a quick breath as his tender nipples made contact. Aurora’s hands found his ass and squeezed and massaged it through the material of his underwear. Just as he had done with the phoenix’s pants, the demon took the waistband between his teeth and gently lowered it until it could fall and pool at his knees. Fully exposed to the elements, Que-nu couldn’t help but shiver.

“Feeling cold?” Aurora asked, his hot breath at the crease between his butt and thigh.

“Only because you won’t get _on_ with it already.” Que-nu teased.

It was the demon’s turn to shiver with excitement. “I like it when you’re needy, Que. You say the most marvelous things.”

Not wanting to test the man further, Aurora finally uncapped the little bottle and deposited a fair amount onto his fingers. He coated his length liberally and set the bottle within arm’s reach just in case more was needed. He wrapped his arms around Que-nu’s middle and kissed his back briefly.

“You’re just a little tense.” He whispered against his skin. “I know it’s cold but you need to relax.”

Que-nu took a deep breath and allowed every muscle in his body to relax. He breathed out a sigh, fogging the ice beneath him. Aurora massaged small circles into his stomach as he felt the man do as he said. Once he was satisfied with his state of mind and body, the demon sat up again and lined himself up. The phoenix felt him press just a little against his opening and received no more warning before he was filled in one slow, clean movement.

“Perfect…” Aurora breathed, stilling inside of him just to revel in the feeling.

The phoenix thrust back against him, and the demon gasped. “Get a move on.” Que-nu panted.

Wasting no more time, Aurora began to move. The demon was a master of hiding just how aroused he was normally, but his impatience became incredibly apparent with the rapid pace he set for them. The phoenix didn’t mind one bit. Despite his dick not having been touched, he was quite close. And more teasing would have just been torture…not that he wasn’t up for that sort of play if Aurora ever wanted to partake in it. He pressed his sweaty forehead to the ice and fought to keep his hips rolling back in time with the man’s thrusts. He could feel Aurora’s lips and fangs grazing his back, and wanted nothing more than for the demon to finally sink his teeth into his flesh.

He finally got his wish when Aurora lost his carefully maintained control and bit down on a small section of skin just below his shoulder blade. The pain was electricity through the phoenix’s body, and his cock twitched with excitement, his breath stuttering into a low moan. The demon’s tongue dragged across the wound almost apologetically, but the snap of his hips never let up even for a split second.

Their breaths and moans and the slick sound of Aurora’s dick sliding smoothly in and out of Que-nu’s hole filled the wide room. The phoenix wasn’t the biggest fan of doing this in public, but right now he didn’t care one bit. Let the world watch and listen. Aurora could make him come undone like this, and that was something to be celebrated. He felt a drop of saliva fall from the corner of his mouth and join the tiniest puddle of water that had formed on the ice’s surface due to Que-nu’s hot breath laboring at it.

At last he felt Aurora’s hands slide down to the front of his thighs from where he had been gripping his hips. His hands massaged the flesh there instead, still teasing as much out of the phoenix as he could. The man groaned and raised his head from the ice just long enough to demand that the demon touch him already. His impatient plea was heeded, and long fingers wrapped around his cock at last.

Que-nu’s breathing stuttered and failed him rapidly as Aurora stroked him in time with his desperate thrusts. He gasped, trying to gulp down precious air that refused to fill his lungs. His precum dripped onto the ice, only a precious few droplets getting smeared over the head of his dick by Aurora’s thumb. He ground his ass harder against the demon, forcing him even the slightest bit deeper. The demon’s free hand grasped his hip firmly, grip almost bruising. He pulled himself nearly all the way out, shifted the position of his knees against the ice, and slammed back in. The minute change in his angle did the trick, and he rubbed firmly against Que-nu’s prostate with every thrust. The phoenix groaned, his arms no longer able to support him.

Aurora’s lips dancing their way to the nape of his neck, and it was the scrape of fangs and a twist of the demon’s hand on his length that did the trick. The phoenix spilled himself onto the ice below him with a sharp cry. The demon pumped him through his orgasm, wringing him dry. Que-nu’s hips had stilled, his body unable to move any more due to his climax and lack of breath. Thankfully Aurora was right behind him, a handful of jittering thrusts being all it took for the demon to empty himself inside of the phoenix.

Their panting, gasping breath was all that either registered for several long seconds. At last Aurora pulled out and fell back until he was laying on the ice. Que-nu rolled onto his side, forehead and arms red from the cold of ice and baring his weight. He cracked his eyes open and despite himself he felt a rush of arousal surge through his body.

The disheveled, sweaty, post-orgasmic look suited the demon well.

A smirk played across the phoenix’s features and he sat up. He leaned over Aurora and brought their lips together in a passionate but sloppy kiss. Aurora chuckled and brought their tongues into the mix. Their kiss faded to lazy after a moment, but Que-nu couldn’t have asked for more. They were both exhausted, after all.

Once Aurora had caught his breath, he pulled his pants and underwear back up and stood. Briefly the phoenix was amazed at how easy the demon made it look to stand after such an ordeal before he took the hand that was being offered to him. Que-nu was a lot more unsteady as he got to his feet, thankful to have the other man there to make sure he didn’t slip and fall again.

“You know, I could teach you how to skate.” Aurora offered, letting Que-nu pull his underwear back into place before guiding him the few feet to the wall.

Que-nu flashed him a grin. “Thanks for the offer, but I think I prefer the sight from the sidelines.” He heaved himself over the wall and was all too eager to accept the rest of his clothes as the demon handed them over. In trade he returned Aurora’s hair tie.

“Oh really? You didn’t have fun just now?” the demon asked curiously. He combed his hair back with his fingers before tying it into a ponytail like it usually was.

“Oh I did!” the phoenix assured him, getting himself situated. He was only mildly annoyed that his clothes were cold from laying on the ice so long. “But uh… Nothing beats a bed or a hot shower, you know?”

Aurora hummed as a smirk crossed his features. “Yes, I do understand that. In fact, are you interested in getting both with me?”

The phoenix shot him a knowing look. “Give me like…twenty minutes. I don’t think I can go again so soon.”

“Twenty minutes, then.” Aurora met him across the wall for a quick peck. “You’re welcome to stay and watch me practice until then.” He leaned down to retrieve his shirt at long last, and Que-nu was sure to devour the eye candy that was the demon bending over in front of him.

“Believe me, I would have even if you hadn’t offered.”

The demon shot him a grin and tossed the bottle of lube back to him. “Good. Hang onto that, we’ll need it.”

The phoenix only nodded and pocketed the bottle again. Aurora pulled his skates back on and used his magic to make a ball of flames in his hands. He hurled it at the spot where they had just been, melting the thick ice clear down to the frigid water that was a few feet below. With a wave of his hand, the water froze over once more, leaving not a trace of their earlier deed. Que-nu couldn’t help but think how handy being able to do that was in this situation. Satisfied that the evidence was rid of, Aurora made his way out into the middle of the ice once more.

He made certain the phoenix’s eyes were on him, and of course they were, before beginning one of the many routines he had stung together in the years he had been skating. Even knowing nothing about ice skating, Que-nu could tell that this time his movements were as far from leisurely as they could possibly be. Everything was deliberate, each maneuver carefully planned, and Que-nu was not going to complain at all to being treated to the erotic display be was being given.


	9. Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Very early on in their relationship, Aurora makes a rather...interesting...discovery about what Que-nu likes during sex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all like biting and scratching. ;)
> 
> Rating: E  
> Characters: Aurora, Que-nu

The first time was an accident. It was an uncontrolled reaction with a completely unpredicted result.

The number of times Aurora had gotten Que-nu into his bed was less than a dozen. It was at a time when they were beginning to wonder just what they were to each other. Aurora was no stranger to having friends whom he would occasionally have sex with, and for the most part Que-nu was just fine with meeting that description. But if they were honest the frequency with which they ended up doing the nasty was getting to be bizarre. Something about Que-nu kept Aurora coming back to him, and because of that Que-nu was learning a lot about his own sexuality…and liked it.

Aurora of course had initiated things. He pulled the phoenix flush against him by the waist and the back of his neck and pressed his lips hungrily against Que-nu’s. Something already had the demon half-hard, and Que-nu was thrilled to meet his call. The phoenix parted his lips without prompting or hesitation, and Aurora in turn brought their tongues into the mix. The hand at Que-nu’s waist crept beneath his shirt and after a few loving caresses to his hip and stomach, the pair removed the article of clothing entirely. Aurora licked his lips before diving back into the action and pressing his mouth along the man’s neck and collarbones in wet, sloppy kisses. Que-nu tipped his head back, giving the demon better access and quietly reveling in the feeling.

After sucking a small red mark onto Que-nu’s throat, Aurora hummed thoughtfully against his flesh. “What should we do this time…? Any ideas?” he asked.

Que-nu furrowed his brow as he tried to come up with something. He gazed down at where the demon was absentmindedly swiping his tongue across his shoulder and collarbones.

“Well… I was thinking that maybe… I dunno, I feel like this is weird.”

“Que, I’ve done a lot of things. Whatever you’re about to say can’t be that bad.”

“If you say so.” His cheeks flushed a bit and he worried his lower lip briefly. “In that case, I was thinking it’d be fun to try riding you.”

Aurora smirked up at him. “That isn’t weird at all. In fact, I’m delighted to hear you say it.” He leaned back and swept his eyes over his handiwork, taking in the light peppering of red splotches on Que-nu’s tan skin. He was dying to sink his teeth into Que-nu’s flesh and then lap up the delicious life fluid that would spill forth, but he refrained. A lot of things could be a turn-on during sex, but he had no idea how the phoenix would react to getting bitten. Instead he took a step back and with a tug to the other man’s hip and shoulder maneuvered the both of them back towards his bed.

He fell back onto the mattress and dragged the phoenix down on top of him. A brief meeting of lips followed, and was only broken as long as it took for both of them to pull themselves further up onto the bed and get more comfortable. A small giggle bubbled up from Aurora as he felt Que-nu gently begin to rock his hips against him the next time they kissed. The phoenix was definitely getting hard, but would still need more stimulation before he was ready to step things up another notch. Completely fine with continuing to take things as slowly as they had been, Aurora ground his own erection up into Que-nu’s and the two released a pair of pleasant sighs.

“So good…” Que-nu breathed, eyes slipping closed.

Their hands wandered, brushing across lean muscles and tender nipples. Aurora stripped off his shirt and Que-nu dipped his head to lavish the demon’s chest as the man had done to him plenty of times before. The demon groaned, his hands roaming over the phoenix’s back. He sucked in a sharp breath when Que-nu bit lightly at one of his nipples. His fingers curled, the tips of his claws pressing dangerously into the other’s skin. Aurora’s breathing was noticeably labored and Que-nu was determined to draw a moan from him. Under normal circumstances, the phoenix would focus his attention above the waist, but this was a special occasion he felt. It wasn’t every day he got to be above the demon.

His hand slid down Aurora’s stomach and briefly teased at the sensitive skin above his pants. Aurora smirked and opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by a low moan that tore from his throat. Que-nu had pressed the heel of his hand against his erection and was stroking him firmly through his pants. But that wasn’t the only sound to be ripped from one of them in that moment.

In the same instant that Aurora vocalized his arousal his claws dug further into the phoenix’s skin, puncturing the flesh and raking down the length of his back. Through the sting of pain Que-nu felt his dick throb and his breath caught in his throat. His eyelids fluttered and he dropped his head onto Aurora’s shoulder, breathing completely ragged. Aurora’s eyes widened at the jerk of Que-nu’s hips against his thigh and the difficulty of his gasps.

After a second, Que-nu sat up, eyes equally wide and expression a mix of confusion, shock, and arousal. “S-Sorry.” He stammered, finding it difficult to speak with a cock that had suddenly begun to leak profusely in a matter of two seconds. “I-I have… No idea what that was just now.”

Aurora smirked up at him, cupping his cheek, the tips of his claws ever so lightly dipped in blood. “Don’t be sorry. That was amazing!” He breathed. “Come here. I want to try something.” He coaxed the man to lean back down and brought his lips to his neck again. He kissed it gently before opening his mouth wide and roughly sinking his fangs into the tender skin. He was rewarded with both the delicious burst of blood against his tongue as well as a deep groan rumbling up from the phoenix’s chest. The stuttering snap of Que-nu’s hips against him was all the more evidence of the man’s highly aroused state. Aurora laved his tongue against the small wounds he had made, both amused and thrilled by his partner’s reactions.

“Are you even going to be able to get on my dick at this rate?” Aurora asked with a chuckle. He felt the phoenix shake his head, too far gone to trust his words. Aurora hummed again. “Want me to use my mouth?”

“N-no…” Que-nu managed to gasp. “Just…let me…” he ground harder into the demon. Aurora bucked up into him, providing all the more stimulation for the man.

It had been a long time since the demon had made somebody come in their pants, and he took a certain delight in seeing the phoenix come completely undone while still half dressed. He choked out a moan when he climaxed, burying his face against Aurora’s neck. The demon ran his fingers tenderly over the torn skin of Que-nu’s back, marveling at the way it made the man’s breath hitch despite having just come.

“Que…are you a masochist?” Aurora asked. He meant to sound delighted, but it had come out more amused. The phoenix didn’t seem to notice or care.

“I…I don’t know.” He replied, his breath slowly beginning to calm. “I really, really do not know what just happened.”

The demon turned his head and kissed his temple. “Well, whatever it was was certainly amazing.” He stated. “We’ll have to run some tests here soon.”

The phoenix huffed out a single laugh. “Not right now. I don’t think I’ve ever come so hard so quickly.”

“Of course. Next time, then.”

Que-nu finally picked himself up, hovering just above Aurora again. He pressed a kiss to his lips briefly before casting him a grin. “Right. But before that we’ve still got you to take care of.”

Without further comments, Que-nu undid the front of Aurora’s pants and pulled his cock free from the confines of his clothing. A few strokes was all it took for the demon to become completely absorbed in the moment again, and he didn’t bother at all to stifle a single moan or gasp when the phoenix finally took him into his mouth and sucked him off.

While the first time was completely by accident, all further times Aurora caused Que-nu pain during sex were completely intentional. As it turned out there was hardly a better way to get the phoenix completely hard and desperate for release than a raking of claws or piercing of fangs against his flesh. And Aurora was all too happy to comply, as he had never found somebody who actually enjoyed the pain he always had to restrain himself from inflicting during sex. Slowly the reasons the demon was so drawn to the phoenix were beginning to click into place.


	10. A Gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three people pay a visit to Death with a deal in mind. Mikaru couldn't ask for better people in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember when I said that Mikaru and Rain's story was a tragic one? Well... I'd love to share the events of exactly WHY they are, but this is not that entry. Instead, this is the entry that turned the whole of that tragedy on its head.
> 
> Rating: T  
> Characters: Kiko, Leia, Delalo, Death, Mikaru, Rain

“You do realize what you are asking me for carries a heavy price, do you not?” a figure cloaked in black spoke.

“We’re aware.” A young imp replied.

“And you’re still willing to pay it?”

“We are. We’re worried about him! This is the first time he’s ever been like this for so long!” a female demon cried.

“You say he has never lost somebody precious to him. Don’t you think this is a good learning experience for him?”

“I used to think that.” The demon stated, lowing her gaze. “I was so sure that in the end, it would be better for him to deal with this. But… I don’t honestly think he _can_ deal with it. Not anymore I don’t. All he does these days is hole himself up in his room and sleep. Even when he has business with the other lords or the king he always comes back completely exhausted. The most lively thing I have seen him do in recent years is greet a new lord, and even then he slept for a whole day after we got back. I’ve tried. I’ve tried so, so hard to make things comfortable for him. I’ve been there for him every moment he’s needed me. But things are only getting worse, I’m afraid.”

The figure looked back at the imp. “And you feel he has not made any recovery either?”

The imp nodded. “I’ve also started to try and look after him these last few years. He does seem to perk up a little when I’m with him, but I think that’s primarily because I’ve become his main partner for sex. I don’t mind that, but even I can tell that it doesn’t give him the emotional comfort he needs.”

The figure nodded silently. It looked between the two for a moment before turning its gaze to the third visitor it had, a visitor who had not yet spoken in the entire time the three had been in its presence. “And what’s say you? You know him the best, do you not?”

The demon man shook his head solemnly. “I have known him the longest, and I certainly know sides of him that others do not, but I would not say I know him the best. I used to, but that was a very long time ago. I’ve only been able to get close to him again in the last ten years or so. Before that…well it had been a very, very long time since we had even laid eyes on one another.”

“And what do you think about his situation?”

“Personally I want him to grow a damn spine and get over this. But… But I know that is not going to happen easily. It’s his first loss, and it is very unfortunate that it was somebody he held so dear. I know him. He probably feels like he deserves the pain he’s in, and he damn well does if I’m quite honest. He’s done far too many unforgivable things in the past, some of them quite recent. He put a gun to our mother’s head!” the man breathed a deep sigh. “And yet I can’t stand to see him like this any longer. He is so desperate for that level of a connection again, I can tell. It was only a few months ago that he even accepted my advances on the roof of the castle. He hasn’t been willing to have sex with me in…well since before our little sister was born!”

“So you three are going to split the cost, then?”

“We are prepared to, yes.” The imp stated.

“What do you have that you can offer me?”

The three looked between each other. They had all come prepared, it was just a matter of who would make the first move. The imp decided it would be him, and he laid a handgun down upon the desk. The figure eyed it curiously, reached out a pale hand towards it, but did not touch it.

“How unique…” it muttered.

“It is the youngest and potentially most powerful of its kind. It was forged by my master himself. It’s known by the name of Blue Moon. Its sisters are Black Moon and Red Moon, owned by my master and my mother, respectively.”

“And you are willing to surrender this to me as payment?”

“I am.”

The figure shook its head. “I am almost unwilling to take such a thing from you. Instead, I will keep it in my possession until such a time as our deal is completed.” It looked to the female demon. “And you?”

“I have in my charge one of yours, as I’m sure you know.”

“You have been keeping her ‘hostage’ for a long time. I’m aware.”

“I will return her to the OverWorld.”

“While normally I would not care, as she has still been able to perform her duties as a reaper, I will accept that. I’m sure she will be happy to be allowed to return to her job. That is what you are implying, are you not?”

That is exactly what I mean. I know for a fact that she wants to return to being a demon slayer. It is something she has not been allowed to do, and I know for a fact that she is not satisfied with her duties as a reaper alone.”

“Fair enough.” Death gazed at the man. “You are the type that either has much or very little to give me. I am curious what it is you think is worthy payment.”

The man flashed him a smile. “As the personal guard of the King of the UnderWorld, I take that as a compliment. Honestly…it took a long time to come up with something that would be a fair trade. I have almost nothing of my own, and what I do have is basically worthless. So I was thinking, ‘what is the most unorthodox payment I could give’?”

Death chuckled. “And what have you come up with?”

With a wave of his hand that was mostly for flourish, the man summoned a tiny glass bottle. He stepped forward and placed it on the desk beside the imp’s gun. Death stared at it, watched the cloudy red fluid swirl within it before turning a puzzled expression up at the man.

“I’m sure you know what this bottle contains. So before I make that offer, I have one more thing I would like to try. Do you mind?”

Death nodded. “Let’s hear it. What are you going to try to give up instead?”

The man gave a shrug. “Intel.”

“On?”

“Specifics about the king.”

“Pass.”

“You don’t want to know?”

“I do not.” Death replied. “That sort of knowledge is valuable only to the slayers. I am the boss of the reapers only. I am not interested in the details of the UnderWorld’s newest ruler.”

“Alright. I can’t say I thought you would say that, but that’s why it was only a plan B. So let’s return to what I originally intended.” The man ran a clawed hand through his bright red locks. “My horns, my tail, my claws and fangs…all of it. The price I will pay will be to surrender my demonhood in its entirety.”

Death’s jaw was not the only one to hit the floor. Both the woman’s and the boy’s did as well.

“Brother! You can’t be serious!” the woman shouted.

The man smiled at her calmly. “I am. As Mother did for herself, I will give up my demonhood for our brother.”

“But if you do that-”

He held up a hand to silence her. “I’ve thought long and hard about this, and it is the one thing I possess that means enough to me to be worth paying. I do not like seeing Keero the way he is. Not at all. He is nothing like the little brother I hold so dearly in my memories.” Tears were beginning to form in the corners of his eyes as he spoke. “I would do anything if it meant I could get even a glimpse of the boy he was all that time ago. If I were to lose out on a large part of my heritage to do that, well, then so be it!” he voice cracked and a single tear fell down his cheek as he shouted. “Keero keeps saying how he is too old for this, or too old for that, or just too old in general! But what does that make me, huh? I’m his _older_ brother! How do you think that makes me feel?! If it means bringing him even the briefest moment of joy, to make him feel young and loved again, then I would do absolutely anything in my power!”

The demon woman quickly closed the distance between them and took him in her arms. He pressed his face into her shoulder and sobbed softly. She stroked his back, trying to soothe him. The boy’s eyes shone with surprise and sadness as he watched them. Behind his desk, Death took a deep breath, pushing his hood back and raking his fingers through his short black hair.

“Very well…” he muttered softly. “A gun forged by a powerful demon lord, of which there are only two others like it in the world, to be in my possession until such a time as the one it is being bartered for returns to me. One of my reapers who has been held hostage from the OverWorld released again to return to her duties as a slayer of your people. And the demonhood of the elder brother. And…” he cast his eyes between the three of them. “The loathing of the man whom you are trying to help for doing this. You do know he will not be happy about what you have given up, correct?”

“We know.” The woman stated.

“Then with these four things, I will deliver to one Demon Lord Keero Mikaru Kerro the one whom he holds most dear in his heart.” He picked up the bottle on the desk and approached the man. His tears had stopped falling by now, but he still clung to his younger sister for comfort. Death held the bottle out to him. “This drink, I’m surprised your mother did not use it herself.” He turned it over in his hands, staring at the deep red, cloudy liquid inside of the clear, unmarked bottle. “It requires an angel’s magic, something your family has access to in abundance.”

“She chose another way…” the man replied, voice a little weak.

“Dulin’s sword, if I recall. He forged it with a similar spell.”

The man nodded.

“I assume the king will not be happy about your decision.”

“You’d be wrong. Rick was the one who found it in the castle’s stores. He knows exactly how rare and valuable it is, and he gave it to me knowing full well what I would use it for. Whether that means he is ‘happy’ about it or not, I can’t say. But this is not a decision I made behind his back.”

Death uncorked the bottle with ease and waved a hand over it. A soft, gentle glow seeped into the bottle from the palm of his hand. Slowly, the liquid inside it paled, turning milky in color. He waited until all the color had seeped out of it before holding it out towards the man.

“It is done. Drink it down completely. You are a devil, and a powerful one at that, so unfortunately you will need to take in all of it.”

Finally the man stood upright again, moved out of his sister’s grasp and took the bottle in a shaking hand. He stared at the liquid. His heart beat rapidly in his chest. He steeled himself and quickly chugged back everything in the little bottle before he could somehow change his mind. As soon as he swallowed the last drop, Death took the bottle from him and he collapsed. His sister was quick to catch him and hoist him up into her arms.

“The transformation will not be quick.” Death stated, corking the bottle once more. “I presume it will take five days, perhaps a week. He will be in pain for some time even after. I suggest somebody look after him.”

The woman nodded. “I will do that if the king will not. Although I have a feeling he’ll be willing to do it himself.”

“Who does it matters not to me. Now then, I must go speak with the soul I am returning. He needs to be informed of this trade.” He paused briefly before giving them a weak, but warm smile. “I do not think he will be any happier to hear about this than Mikaru will. Leia, Delalo, I hope you two really are ready for this.”

The woman smiled back at him. “I think I’ll manage.”

“It’s going to be weird to meet my grandfather, but I think this is for the best, too.” Leia replied.

Death nodded. “Go on now. I don’t think Kiko can sleep well being carried like that. Get him to bed.”

*****

As per usual, Mikaru didn’t know or particularly care what time it was when he awoke. He had had nothing going on the last week and so had spent most of it sleeping. That had become normal from him. He would take care of any business he had, would come home exhausted, would let Delalo and Leia pamper him, and would fall asleep. He would wake every now and again to eat, or bathe, or find a place out in the gardens to nap, or even just roll over and fall back asleep. It was hardly a way to live, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to do much else. He just did not have the drive the do anything. He knew it was a problem. He knew it better than anyone else. And he knew it was causing those around him to be concerned for him, yet still he couldn’t get himself to do anything. It had taken him many years to reach the state he was in, and a part of him wondered just how much lower he would sink and how much longer it would take before he would start to make a recovery.

He heaved a heavy sigh. He had to get out of bed. If anything, he wanted to get some fresh air. Even if it meant that he would ultimately just pass out again as soon as he found a patch of grass that he thought comfortable, he thought it might do him better than being underground where he wasn’t even aware of the passage of time. He kicked the blankets off himself and sat upright, rubbing his eyes that he hadn’t yet opened.

He froze.

And blinked.

And blinked again.

He closed his eyes and drew a deep, shaking breath. His heart was racing and he swore up one side and down the other that he must be hallucinating, or having one very sick dream. He chanced to crack his eyes open again.

No.

No!

No no no no no!

There was absolutely no way… This was not real. This was a trick of his mind, he was sure of it. A sick, disgusting trick! He squeezed his eyes shut again. His brow wrinkled in anger. How? How?! How could his eyes and mind deceive him so?! Wasn’t he in enough pain without his mind doing _this_ to him!

And yet when he opened them again, the man was still visible to him, as clear as day. Mikaru slid off the edge of his bed and slowly, cautiously, as if every step would dispel some illusion, walked around it. He stood beside the figure who was sitting in a chair and leaning against the bed, sound asleep. His hand was shaking something awful as he reached out towards him. So badly was he quivering that his fingertips touched not the shoulder he was intending to, but the man’s head that rested partially upon it. Mikaru sucked in a breath. His brown hair was soft, and felt real. Without thinking about it at all, the demon threaded his fingers further into it and he had to sit down on the bed, feeling he would not be able to remain standing much longer.

He didn’t know how or why…but he was there. His skin was warm, he was breathing evenly, and he appeared to be unhurt. He was alive and well and in Mikaru’s room and WHY!? HOW?!

“Rain…” Mikaru squeaked, “What are you doing here…?”

His voice caused the man to flinch and slowly his eyes slid open. He blinked a couple of times, clearing the sleepy haze from his mind and vision. He felt Mikaru’s fingers in his hair and nearly closed his eyes again in contented bliss, but he met the demon’s eyes before he got that chance. Wide, pure red eyes glistening with moisture peering down steadily into his golden ones. He cast the man a grin that was a bit lopsided from the remnants of sleep that were still with him.

“Surprise…!” he laughed, sitting upright. His back cracked and popped, the position he had been sleeping in not comfortable for as long as he had been in it.

The demon stared at him for a long while, and Rain merely stared back at him with a smile. Confusion, anger, sadness…these were all things that wormed their way around the edges of Mikaru’s gaze. But one thing and one thing only stood mountains above the rest. Rain got to his feet, Mikaru’s hand falling from his hair and onto his shoulder instead. With the smallest and airiest of laughs Rain dropped down onto one knee before the demon and bowed his head low.

“From now until my life is once again forfeit, I am yours to command…Master.” He said. It was obvious he was trying to remain calm, but the slight tremor in his voice betrayed him.

Mikaru’s heart fluttered. “Idiot. Stand up.” He commanded softly and Rain did so, meeting his gaze again. “If you are down there, how I am I supposed to do _this_?”

The demon’s fist grabbed at the collar of Rain’s shirt and with a swift yank he pulled the man down into a fierce kiss. Rain wound his arms around his master’s small frame and leaned down fully into their kiss, not letting the man so much as tilt his head back for their lips to meet. Everything Mikaru was feeling finally broke through the surface and tears fell freely from his eyes. When they parted, he stroked Rain’s cheek affectionately, all other emotion finally leaving his expression. Rain smiled at him, full of devotion.

“Now _that’s_ the way I remember you looking at me.” The man whispered into the thin space between them. “When you look at me, no one is supposed to see anything but love, remember?” he teased.

“Right… Right.” Mikaru said, closing his eyes and pressing their foreheads together. “I’ll get my explanation from those who are involved, but not from you. Because if somehow, someway you are here, then that is all I want from you; to be here.”

“Then here I shall be.”

“And to kiss me.” Mikaru added, slipping his eyes open just enough to peer into Rain’s again. “In fact, if you could never stop kissing me, that would be appreciated.”

Rain did kiss him again, but only briefly. “As much as I would gladly do that, I don’t think it would be possible. But we’ll have plenty of time for it, I’m sure.”

Mikaru hummed disapprovingly. “Alright. Then let’s compromise. Come take a nap with me in the garden.”

The vampire raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t you just wake up?”

“Don’t make me order it of you.”

He laughed and kissed him once more before standing upright. “As you wish, Master.”

“Carry me?”

“Of course.”

Picking up the much shorter man was an easy feat for Rain, who delighted in scooping Mikaru up into his arms bridal-style. Mikaru wrapped his arms securely around his neck and buried his face into his chest. Yes, there were many, many questions he had and he so very badly wanted to know the answers to them. But more than that Mikaru wanted to relish in Rain’s presence, in Rain’s touch and his kisses, until he was able to come to terms with the fact that the man was there with him again.

And Rain was happy to indulge him in that, no matter how long it took.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um… There’s probably only one other person in the world who understands the magnitude of what has just occured without me needing to explain it. So prepare for a lengthy explanation.
> 
> Rain is a character that has been dead since his conception. I’ve written bits and pieces of his life, primarily about his relationship to Mikaru, but he’s always been dead in my mind. Mikaru was never meant to be a depressed character, but over the years he’s become like that…and that is largely in part because I as the writer have made Rain so important to him.
> 
> With that said, I want to admit that I had been in a bit of a slump when it comes to several of my own characters. There’s things I’ve wanted to do with them, but I couldn’t think of how. Well, here’s my chance to do those things. This poorly-written bit serves nicely as a jumping-off point for a lot a changes.
> 
> The first of which being Mikaru’s recovery.
> 
> The second of which is of course integrating Rain into the world as it is now.
> 
> The third is allowing Leia to grow up more independently. This is the first thing that I don’t think anyone but me realizes. Leia is still very much a child, and he desperately needs time to come into himself instead of always looking to serve Mikaru. Now he’s got that chance.
> 
> Fourth is that Delalo too can start doing more for herself again.
> 
> Fifth, this means Keyontay can return to doing something she loves. I can finally write her doing the thing she was trained to do! That’s something I have never done before!
> 
> And sixth and finally, this means a number of changes for Kiko. The least of which being that he gets to adjust to life as as full-blooded elf.
> 
> So yeah. Wiggle room to start a bunch of different things…eventually! That is the purpose this served! HOORAY CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT EVEN YEARS AFTER THESE CHARACTERS’ CONCEPTIONS!


	11. "Sibling" Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Delalo has always been like an older sister to Leia. So really it's no surprise that she wants to drag him out of his room for a little date on Valentine's Day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to make it abundantly clear that even though I always refer to him as "boy", Leia is a teenager. He's not a child.
> 
> Rating: T  
> Characters: Delalo, Leia

A knock came at the bedroom door, but before Leia could even call out in reply his visitor turned the knob and threw open his door.

“LEIA! I have come to drag you out of your room!” Delalo shouted, strolling into his room excitedly.

The boy yelped in surprise and quickly minimized the window he had been looking at. The woman threw her arms around his shoulders, not paying attention at all to what he could have been doing. Leia twisted in his chair to look her in the face.

“Miss Delalo, don’t just barge in here!” he complained.

She hummed, mocking thoughtfulness. “But you always tell me to knock and I did. And stop it with the ‘miss’!”

“You’re supposed to wait until I tell you that you can come in!”

“So picky.” She teased, gazing at his computer screen. “So what were you doing that you closed it so fast when I came in? Was it porn?” she grinned at him.

“It was not!” Leia shouted. Delalo stared at him expectantly and he let out a sigh. He opened the window again and let her take a look at what he had been doing. “It’s just embarrassing…”

She stared at the numerous pictures and gifs that were on display now. Each and every one of them were months old and were of Arun and Aurora pair skating during the last performance their little ice skating club had put on. Fans certainly had a way of capturing every last angle of every little thing they did. Also judging by their comments many had a way of not understanding that the two of them were in no way romantically involved with each other.

“So do you just like being a fanboy of your own mom and uncle or are you looking at this for a reason?” she asked the boy whom she still had not let go of.

The boy blushed. “I’m not being a fanboy!” he exclaimed. “I just thought they were both really beautiful so I wanted to study them a bit.”

Delalo arched an eyebrow at him. “That sounds like fanboying to me.”

“I meant the way they skate!” he shouted, his blush darkening. “I’m still really bad, and Mom wants me to skate with her next time so…”

The woman let out a bark of a laugh and squeezed him lightly. “I get it, I get it! I’m just teasing you.” She planted a kiss on his cheek. “That’s good of you to try and study like that. But it isn’t good for you to stay in your room like this all the time. So come on; get yourself ready and we’ll go into town.”

Leia breathed a deep sigh. Delalo released him and he rolled his chair back from his desk. “Where are we going?” he asked.

“The Surface is full of things for couples to do this time of year, so I thought we could go up there and see what was available.” She replied.

“But we aren’t a couple!”

“So? Doesn’t mean we can’t go on a little date. We’re two people out on Valentine’s, that’s enough for them. No one is going to demand we kiss to prove anything.” She grinned at him. “Not that I wouldn’t kiss you. You’re getting more handsome by the day, you know that?”

Again Leia blushed. “Stop teasing me…” he grumbled.

The woman laughed and sat on the corner of his bed to wait for him. Thankfully all he had to do was dig through his dresser for a pair of socks and then pull them and his shoes on. As much as Delalo wouldn’t have cared if he had to change clothes, Leia surely would have made her leave the room and she didn’t feel like getting up just for that. When he was ready, she hopped back to her feet, grabbed him by the hand, and all but dragged him from his room.

“Arun! I’m kidnapping your son for the afternoon! I’ll make sure he gets fed and back to you by eight!” Delalo announced loudly as she led them out of Jake’s rooms. The woman she had been addressing was in another room and simply shouted “Okay!” in reply.

*****

Delalo led Leia to a small town in the SurfaceWorld. It was a place both of them had been to many times before. The humans their age that resided there often lamented that there was nothing to do. For the two of them, though, there was plenty. In order to blend in they both took on the appearance of humans; both losing their horns, tails, claws, and fangs. Leia’s skin lost its green hue and Delalo’s melted from charcoal black to dark, dark brown. They even shortened up their ears. In the end only their eyes were left to give them away. Delalo also pocketed her necklace, causing her to look like the young woman she was and not a child. Leia had mixed feelings about this, especially when she held his arm as they walked. Shy as always, he couldn’t help the tiny flush that rose to his cheeks at his arm being pressed to her chest.

His mood was lifted as they began to partake in ridiculous couple-y things. The first on the list was to stop somewhere to get something to eat. Delalo brought them to a small restaurant and bought them both a couple of strawberry shakes that were on sale for holiday. They weren’t exactly hungry, so it was more than enough to satisfy the both of them. They elected to walk around and look for something to do while they drank them down, with Delalo insisting on holding hands.

“You know, it sucks that more places up here don’t serve cherry-flavored things.” Delalo grumbled, tossing her empty cup into a trashcan on the sidewalk as they passed. “Strawberry is nice and all, but humans use it in so many sweets! I prefer cherry so much more.”

Leia couldn’t help but smile at that. “Then open your own store up here and sell all things cherry.”

She rolled her eyes, but grinned at him. “I would, but humans are crazy when it comes to their laws about things like that. It would take way too much work to do something like that. I love cherries, but not enough to go through all the hassle.”

Of course the next thing on the list of “dumb things couples do on Valentine’s Day” was to go and see a movie. The pair looked at what was being shown. Delalo tried her hardest to get Leia to watch what was known to be borderline porn, but the boy refused no matter how much she insisted it would be funny. Instead they chose the most clichéd-looking romantic comedy they saw for the same reason. It was lucky for them that the theater was mostly empty, so the two sat by themselves in the front row, away from where all the actual couples would be sitting and paying more attention to each other than the movie.

At first Leia didn’t understand what the appeal of such a movie was, but it only took a few minutes for Delalo to lean over and whisper to him about how stupid it was for two people to bash into each other’s heads at a coffee shop and then proceed to set up a date. Leia stifled his laughter, and from then on the two of them tore the movie apart. A few times they had to shush each other for fear of getting kicked out. Once the movie had ended and they were both outside again, they burst into laughter.

Somehow they managed to walk the few blocks to a nearby park, where they promptly found a bench to throw themselves down onto and loudly continue to pick apart the terrible movie. People who walked by gave them a variety of looks, from raised eyebrows at their apparent age difference, to some who took offence to their loud conversation, to a few young ladies who found them to be cute together.

“Here’s another tip for you, Leia…” Delalo said between laughs. She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “If you ever start dating somebody, don’t suddenly show up at their house at eleven o’ clock with a bouquet of flowers to try and apologize for _anything_! Especially if you date a human. Most of them are in bed at that time!”

The boy snickered. “I already know that!”

“Well just in case you didn’t. Because I guarantee it will not go over as well as it does in the movies!”

“She slammed the door in his face, and he had to go to her kitchen window and beg for her to let him in!”

“Oh yeah! Don’t do _that_ either! That’ll get you arrested!”

“I would never!”

The sun had almost set completely by the time their conversation died down. Sometime during it, Delalo had laid across the length of the bench and rested her head on Leia’s lap. The boy had panicked at first, wondering what she was doing being so intimate in public. It only took a few passing couples for him to remember that on that particular day what they were doing really wasn’t out of the ordinary and he calmed down a little. Leia had almost thought she had fallen asleep when she finally sat upright again and suggested that they do a bit of walking before they go back home. He agreed, and again Delalo held his arm as they meandered through the park.

With a bit of coaxing, she led him down a path that had far fewer lampposts and a lot more foliage around the walkway. Leia already knew what she was up to, and it made him blush yet again the further they went along. He hung his head, choosing to stay focused on the ground directly in front of him than anywhere else. Delalo on the other hand was carefully scanning the brush around them. As expected, every five to ten minutes of their walk they heard a couple somewhere nearby who thought they were being quiet and sneaky. Delalo had to bite back laughter every time they passed somebody, and Leia’s ears burned with embarrassment along with his cheeks. For all that she may not seem like it, Delalo was still a demon after all, and flustering Leia was one of her favorite things to do.

It was nearly three quarters of an hour later that they returned to the more well lit up part of the park. Leia breathed a sigh of relief, knowing they weren’t going to be passing anyone hiding in the bushes anymore. Delalo couldn’t help but giggle at the look on his face. Teasing him was just too easy, she couldn’t help it!

At long last the two left the park entirely and returned to Mikaru’s palace in the UnderWorld. True to her word, Delalo dropped Leia off again at his room a few minutes before eight. The boy pulled his shoes off and fell face-first onto his bed. Delalo sat down on the edge of his bed with a giggle. She ran a hand through his hair affectionately, and Leia would have been lying if he said it didn’t make him smile just a little.

“See, going out with me is fun!” she proclaimed.

“Yes, but it is also embarrassing.” He sighed into his pillow. “And now my feet hurt.”

“From just that little bit of walking?” she asked, surprised. “You’re an ice skater!”

“Yeah, a bad one.” He stated, rolling over onto his back to look at her. “I was using my magic to make me look human. I hardly had enough to enhance my strength and stamina like usual.”

The woman shook her head at that. “You are so powerful, I sometimes forget that you lack the experience to put that magic to use.” She smiled at him brightly. “I could massage your feet for you!”

“Don’t you dare touch them!” he shouted, his face lighting up yet again.

She let out a bark of a laugh. “Okay, okay! I won’t.” she stood up once more. “Thank you for coming out with me today, really. Normally I would be trying to get Master some fresh air on a day like today, but…well…” she smiled fondly at the thought in her head and she spoke quietly, “I get the feeling he doesn’t want to be disturbed right now.”

The boy understood what she was getting at. As much as the thought of Mikaru spending time with the person he loved most of all warmed his heart, Leia couldn’t help but grimace at the thought of his _grandfather_ being affectionate with the man.

“Do you think they’re…you know?” he asked, face contorted.

“Nah.” She replied, waving off the idea he was too shy to ask about properly. “Knowing those two, they’re just enjoying a nap together. You know how much Master loves to cuddle when he sleeps. And Rain would be thrilled to be used as a pillow even if he didn’t fall asleep himself.”

“Well… I guess I’m happy for them, as awkward as it is to think about my grandpa like that.”

Again the woman laughed. “You get some rest too. Key should be back here soon, and I want to know how things went for her. I’ll come bother you some other time.”

“Remember to wait for me to answer next time before you come barging in!” Leia called out as the woman left his bedroom.


	12. Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiko's road to recovery after his deal with Death is a long one. Luckily for him, Rick is there to look after him every step of the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G  
> Characters: Rick, Kiko

The first sensation he was aware of was that he was still incredibly tired. The second was that he had no idea what time, or even what day, it was. The third was that there was that he was covered in a soft, warm blanket. The fourth was that he was lying down, presumably in his own bed. The fifth was that there was an unknown weight on the blanket to his left. The sixth, that opening his eyes took all of his willpower. And the seventh, that every single little part of his body ached down to his bones.

Kiko blinked, staring bleary-eyed up at the ceiling. Through the haze of sleep he could tell that it was daylight. He blinked again, and with some effort turned his head to see what it was beside him. The faintest of smiles tugged at the corners of his lips. It seems he did not wake for no reason, as Rick was retracting his hand from where it had been pressed against his forehead.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.” The man apologized softly. “I wanted to check your temperature.”

Kiko licked his lips, taking a moment to find his voice. “’S fine.” He muttered, barely loud enough to be audible even to himself. “How long…?”

Rick sat down on the edge of the bed where he had previously only been leaning on. “About three and a half days.” Kiko gave a pitiful groan. “Delalo brought you back home, and Jewel and I have been keeping an eye on you. I just came in to make sure you were still comfortable.”

The once-hybrid elf slid his eyes closed again and breathed a little sigh. “Sorry. I know you’re busy with other things. And I’m supposed to be the one looking after you.”

Kiko felt long fingers, warm, and gentle comb through his hair. “Nonsense. You’ve done more than your fair share of taking care of me all these years. Let me return the favor, even if only briefly.”

“You’re too kind.” The elf teased, his smile growing.

The demon continued to pet Kiko’s hair. If he had had the energy, the elf would have liked to nuzzle into those soft, warm fingers and palm. The thought had him blush, if only a fraction. He really was in a vulnerable state, not just physically but emotionally too, if he felt like being affectionate like that. He wasn’t as bad as his little brother, but he was certainly not the kind to go ahead and snuggle on a whim.

“Kiko, if I may be frank about something…” Rick began. Where he had been kind and soothing before, his tone had changed. He was being serious now and Kiko willed his eyes open again in order to look at him and show that he had his undivided attention…at least to the best of Kiko’s ability. “I’m starting to believe that self-destructive idiocy runs in your family.”

Despite the harsh words, Kiko huffed out a laugh. Rick frowned and continued.

“I’m serious! The more I get to know you lot, the more I am certain. This is hardly the first time I have seen one of you so easily throw yourself in harm’s way just for the sake of somebody you love! And how do you think that makes us feel, huh? We’re worried about you, you know that?”

“But I’m not in harm’s way.” Kiko pointed out. “I’m just fine.”

“You’re not.” Rick replied sternly. “I have never seen you, or anyone for that matter, like this. You may not think much of it, but it’s incredibly stressful to see you this way. You don’t even have the strength to turn your head into my hand. And don’t try to deny that you were thinking about it! If it weren’t for my mate and I, where would you be right now?”

“With Delalo.”

The king groaned. “That is not the point and you know it! Just because you have somebody to protect you does not mean you are not in harm’s way. You’re going to be lucky if you come out of this without at least a cold!”

Again the elf chuckled. “Really? I’ve never gotten a cold before. That’s exciting.”

“You know, I’m pretty sure the Japanese have a saying that ‘idiots can’t catch colds’ but you are certainly one who would find a way.”

“That is twice now you have implied that I am an idiot.” He giggled again. “Hey, I remember how to count!”

“You _are_ an idiot.”

“And what does that make you?”

“Huh?”

“If I’m an idiot, what does that make you? You’re the one who didn’t even want to wake me when you were checking my temperature. You’re the one who took me in and gave me a job as your personal guard. You’re the one who will make out with me at the drop of a hat when no one is looking. You’re the one who gave me that vial to turn me into what I am now. I’m pretty sure most people wouldn’t do those things if they honestly thought I was an idiot.”

Rick had to avoid eye contact with him, if only briefly, before speaking again. Kiko considered that a win. “I never said I wasn’t a fool as well. But do remember that I owe you so much. A man is nothing if he does not at least try to repay his debts.”

“So that’s all you’re doing? Repaying a debt?”

“Of course not!” the king shouted, bordering on angrily. “I care about you!”

“I love you too, pal.” Kiko teased.

The hand in his hair slid forward and covered his eyes instead. “Go back to sleep. Seeing you so pathetic like this is painful.” Beneath his palm Rick felt Kiko’s eyelashes flutter shut.

“Painful as in so annoying you have a headache, or painful as in so amusing you’re in stitches?”

“Painful as in it makes my heart ache to see you so weak that you probably couldn’t even tilt your head up to take a drink, let alone swallow it, on your own. So go to sleep and get better quickly.”

The silence that followed seemed to imply that Kiko was going to comply. Rick removed his hand from his eyes and made to stand again. His departure was only halted by the elf whispering his name.

“Could I get a good-night kiss?” he asked.

Rick gave him a fond look. He leaned against the bed once more and then lowered himself further until his lips tenderly brushed across Kiko’s. The elf beamed in delight when he felt the man rise again.

“Sleep well, Kiko.”

*****

Rick shut the door to Kiko’s bedroom behind him. He breathed a sigh and looked up at Jewel, who had been waiting for him outside.

“I heard you two talking in there. How is he?” she asked.

The king offered her a smile. “Well, he was able to snark and tease so… He’ll be fine. He just needs a _lot_ more rest.”

The demon woman beamed brightly and hugged her mate joyously. “That’s wonderful to hear! I do hope he gets back to being himself soon.”

Rick returned the gesture, giving her a tight squeeze. “Me too.”


	13. Confused

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The moments after his and Aurora's first time, Que-nu can't help but feel weird about things. Aurora helps him figure part of it out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: M  
> Characters: Aurora, Que-nu

The world seemed to be spinning and Que-nu’s heart hammered in his own ears. He leaned forward and lay his face in his hands, mind going a mile a minute. He couldn’t figure out what was going on, just couldn’t piece it all together. Not for lack of trying, of course, but he just couldn’t accept it. What was going on with him!?

Beside him the bed sank as Aurora sat down next to him, still as naked as he had been when he had gotten up to clean himself off. Que-nu didn’t spare him a glance but could tell that his eyes were on him.

“Having regrets?” Aurora asked.

“No… Not at all.” Que-nu stated. “It’s just…” he lowered his hands, willed his eyes to open and for the pit in his stomach to get lost. “I’m… I guess I’m just confused. I’ve never been with a man before so-”

Aurora rolled his eyes and cut him off. “Oh great, don’t tell me you’re one of those types who freaks out because they suddenly realize they’ve just had sex with a man. Look, I seduce straight guys all the time. You don’t have to stress about that crap.”

“NO!” the phoenix shouted, catching the demon off guard. “That’s not it! I mean…” he turned his gaze down to his bare legs. “I’ve always thought men were attractive, I guess. I just… I guess I just didn’t realize what that meant.” He breathed a sigh before elaborating. “I’ve heard other men talk about it. How they had thought themselves to be in love with another guy, but the moment the clothes came off it all went wrong. Like seeing another dick was the biggest turn-off in the universe. To be honest I thought that was all it was, really. I’ve seen other men naked, but have never really cared for looking at penises. But then… You got naked and I saw _you_ and it was so different from all of that!” he shook his head and looked over at Aurora again. “What I’m saying is I’m just now realizing that I actually _like_ men. And that’s weird to me because all this time I was so certain I liked women! I’ve had sex with one before no problem! I loved her, even! So what-”

“You’re bi.”

Que-nu blinked at his companion. “…Huh?”

“Bisexual. It means you find interest in both men and women.”

“There’s such a thing as that?”

“Of course.” Aurora shrugged. “Technically there’s a lot of terms that cover an even wider array of interests. But for the sake of keeping things simple; you’re bi.”

The phoenix was still confused and he tilted his head a little to one side. “I don’t understand though, how can I be bisexual if I haven’t really cared about seeing a penis until just now?”

“Now you’re trying to make things more complicated than I have a feeling they are.” Aurora sat more comfortably on the bed. “Alright, I’ll play psychiatrist. Your attraction could be situational. The situation dictated that sex was taking place, so your mind and body reacted accordingly when you saw me naked.”

“Then why does seeing a woman naked arouse me even if things aren’t sexual?”

“Conditioning, most likely.” The demon offered. “I’ve an acquaintance I have seen naked since I was very young. She and I can be naked around each other and neither of us is ‘bothered’, so to speak. But should we ever decide to have sex, of course we become aroused by being naked around one another. Yet on another hand, I do like seeing other women naked no matter the situation. It would be the same basic principle: you have only seen other men in non-sexual environments before, so you have never thought of their bodies as something arousing. How many women have you seen naked in a platonic way?”

Que-nu’s cheeks flared up as he thought about it for a few seconds. “None… Or at least almost none.”

“Exactly.”

Que-nu fell silent for a few moments, mulling over what he had just been told. It…made sense. He had to admit that. It still felt strange, and he wasn’t sure if it really explained everything or not. At least for now he was willing to accept it. If nothing else it made the world stop spinning on him. While he thought, Aurora reached over and placed a hand on his thigh. He glanced up at the man curiously. Aurora leaned towards him, giving him a smirk.

“Of course, if things are still confusing to you, I won’t object to fucking you until you forget all those worries you’re having.”

That…was a lot more arousing than it should have been, Que-nu thought. He had cum not even fifteen minutes ago, but those words and the hand on his leg and that smirk alone were enough to excite him, even if just a little.

“I don’t think that would actually help matters.” The phoenix replied truthfully.

The demon hummed and slid his hand a fraction higher up his leg. “Maybe not, but the offer is still on the table.”

“Before that, there’s something else I’d like to talk to you about.”

“Hm?”

“Do you always just… You know… Have sex with people?”

“How do you mean?”

“I mean is this kind of thing normal for you? You just have sex with people you’ve only just met. No feelings involved, no promises of anything more. Just sex.”

The demon shrugged again. “I do. It’s a fun way to kill time. Why? I take it you’re the type who always thought sex had to come from feelings of love?” The phoenix nodded slowly and the demon scoffed. “I’ve got news for you; people can fuck just about anyone they find physically attractive. Those who need to be in love with the other person are actually quite rare. I myself have actually never had sex with somebody I’m _in love_ with. Besides, I’m pretty sure what we just did could almost be classified as hate-sex, which is arguably the exact opposite of what you’re talking about.”

“I don’t hate you.” Que-nu stated.

“I don’t hate you either.” Aurora agreed. “I can’t say I’m a fan of your squawking-”

“Singing.” The phoenix corrected with a glare.

“Singing then, but I do not hate you.”

“So…this doesn’t make us anything? That we’ve had sex means nothing?”

“Pretty much.” Aurora leaned closer to him, just about pressing their bodies together. “Why? Do you want it to mean something more? You are a very handsome man. I wouldn’t mind if we made this a thing.”

The phoenix swallowed thickly, thinking for a moment about pulling away but decided not to. “Define ‘a thing’.”

“That depends. Right now I’m thinking I’d like it if you and I would have sex again, perhaps several times more.”

“I don’t think I could even do more than one round right now.”

“I never said it all had to be right now.”

“So what, you want us to be…?”

“Fuck-buddies.” Aurora replied with a laugh. “That would be interesting, don’t you think? No strings attached, just sex. Something to pass the time that also feels incredible. I could do so much more than suck you off, you know.”

Que-nu could feel himself blushing again. What was it about Aurora that made him feel like putty in his hands? “I… I think I’d like that, too.” He admitted. “I’ve never even entertained that sort of relationship before. But now? Yeah, I’d like that.”

The demon grinned, fangs fully bared. “Wonderful!” his fingers danced up Que-nu’s thigh and towards his slowly-hardening cock. “Shall we get started on our second time already?”

The phoenix smiled back at him. “Sure.”

Aurora brought their lips together firmly.


	14. An Angel's First Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keyontay may be crushing on Aurora, but as it turns out he isn't the only one she has feelings for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G  
> Characters: Keyontay, Delalo

It was almost shameful how long it took Keyontay to realize she was in love. Even years after the fact, she still had no idea how she hadn’t noticed her own feelings sooner. Perhaps it was that she had been blinded by the way her heart raced when she even looked at Aurora, let alone when he paid any attention to her. Perhaps it was because she hadn’t considered feeling comfortable around somebody and a willingness to trust them to be signs of anything but friendship. Perhaps it was that she had never thought she would fall for another girl.

The first time she realized her feelings for Delalo might not be platonic was when the demon girl found out that she was having a hard time dealing with the cold of winter. Without so much as speaking to her about it, Delalo went and made Keyontay several warm sets of clothing so that she wouldn’t have to stay holed up in her room all the time. Keyontay remembered putting on one of her new shirts and taking a moment to marvel that it smelled like the demon. She noticed that the only time she had noticed somebody’s scent so strongly had been with Aurora. She became very confused as to why Delalo was making her have the same reaction.

The second time came after the secret of her being a Grim Reaper got out. She had felt guilty and distressed that the one thing no demon was ever supposed to know about her was now known by Demon Lord Mikaru, as well as all of his minions. She locked herself in her room, crying and berating herself for letting it slip. True, it meant she could cut loose and kill the lot of them and set herself free, but she knew her powers were not meant to be abused in such a way. Death would about have her head if she used them for a take other than reaping the souls she had been assigned to. Not to mention the mere thought of what a demon might try to do with those powers made her sick to her stomach.

Having a key to her room, Delalo barged into her space. At the time Keyontay was furious that the demon wouldn’t give her space, but Delalo wasn’t deterred. All she did was sit down beside the angel and pull her close and hold her tight against her chest. Keyontay was confused about what she was trying to do, but ended up crying into her all the same, all the while Delalo gently rubbed her back. A day later and the angel was able to realize that she actually did feel greatly calmed to be in her arms.

When puberty hit and Keyontay went through her first growth spurts, she began to notice something about Delalo. The demon girl had always been very short, that was obvious. But the more the angel grew, the more she began to think the other to be very cute. There were times when she felt overwhelmed by the urge to hug her. She thought maybe that was normal, the same sort of thing one might feel for a small or baby animal. But then she began to notice she wanted to hug her even when she wasn’t saying or doing anything in particular.

Realization truly struck the angel late one night when she was trying to get to sleep. She had had a busy day and she was incredibly tired. Despite that, her mind wouldn’t shut off. She kept thinking about little things, things that she couldn’t change now and ultimately didn’t matter, but it all made her feel distressed. On a whim she got out of bed and decided to go for a short walk. She met Delalo in the hallway, and with only the slightest explanation the demon decided to join her.

The cool night air was relaxing, and having Delalo by her side calmed Keyontay greatly. Twenty minutes of slowly meandering about the garden was enough to have Keyontay ready to sleep at last. Delalo walked her back to her room, and before the demon could leave Keyontay acted on impulse and finally did hug her. It was a gesture Delalo was surprised by, but ultimately returned with a smile. Once her bedroom door was shut behind her, Keyontay noticed that her heart was racing.

It was hammering in her chest the same way it did whenever she looked at Aurora. It made her blush. She hurried to her bed to try and sleep, but she was wide awake again. She couldn’t stop thinking about how dearly she held Delalo, and how much it distressed her to think about not being able to see her ever again if she tried to run away. Or worse…if she killed her. It was something she hadn’t thought about since she came to terms with the few demons she knew knowing her secret some months ago. She chalked it up to being tired and willed herself to sleep.

In the morning, she greeted Delalo as usual and it suddenly hit her that should she ever be ordered to, Keyontay would not be able to kill her. That settled it. Keyontay was in love and she could no longer deny it to herself.

For a short time she made a bit of a fool of herself. She blushed whenever Delalo looked at her, and stammered and stuttered if the demon ever touched her. It took a few months, but Keyontay finally decided she couldn’t carry on the way she had been. Even if it meant embarrassing herself by confessing her love, she had to make it known so that she could move on. Prepared to be rejected, Keyontay got Delalo alone and came right out and said that she had a crush on her. To her surprise, Delalo smiled and hugged her tightly. The demon confessed that she loved the angel, too.

It was one of the happiest moments in the angel’s life. The girl she loved felt the same way, and they were hugging out their happiness. It was strange; hugging the demon after they had admitted their feelings. They had hugged plenty of times before, but now that everything was out in the open it felt more real. Like the hug was meant to ground them after the sudden burst of happiness making them feel like they could float away, and yet at the same time the hug made them even happier.

Their first kiss was shared only moments later. Delalo, having experience in that field, asked if she was allowed to. Keyontay, high on her first love coming to fruition, allowed it. Delalo’s kiss had been tender, and it was everything Keyontay could have wanted from her first.


	15. Adulthood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even as a young teenager, Rick never _quite_ had a father-son relationship with Kiko.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to write some making-out...
> 
> Rating: T  
> Characters: Kiko, Rick

“Night-night, Rick!” a young Keyontay chimed happily. “Nighty night, Kiko!”

“Good night, Key.” Rick replied with a smile.

“Sleep well, sweety.” Kiko replied, leaning forward on the edge of the sofa to exchange a quick peck on the cheek with her before she scampered off to her room for the night.

Her mother was waiting by the stairs for her and followed her in order to read the girl a bedtime story. Kiko and Rick were left on their own downstairs in the living room for a while. Rick had the TV on and was idly channel-surfing, not looking for anything in particular. Kiko cast him a teasing grin and it only took a few seconds for the boy to look over at him questioningly.

“What?”

“Isn’t it coming up on your bedtime as well? Want me to tuck you in?”

Rick narrowed his eyes and furled his brow. “I’m not a child anymore. I haven’t been since before we met. You know that, right?”

Kiko waved him off. “You keep saying that, but I still don’t believe you. In fact, I’m not sure I’ll ever see you as a grown man. Especially when you look like you’re 12.”

“Look who’s talking.”

“Hey, I’m half-elf. There’s only so much I can do about my appearance.”

“I’ve _seen_ what you really look like!”

The demon snickered. “Okay, okay. You’ve caught me. I like to look younger than I actually am. What’s your point?”

“You have no reason to be treating me like a child when you prefer to be one yourself.”

“It’s because you’re trying so hard to convince me that you’re an adult. You know that, right?”

Rick breathed a heavy sigh. “You don’t treat Kama like a baby… She’s much younger than me…” he grumbled.

Kiko leaned back in his seat and stretched his legs out. “Maturity has nothing to do with age.” He said flatly. “I treat Kama like a woman because she damn well is one, and you know that. She might only be nineteen, but she’s far more an adult than even I am.”

“Why does everyone say that?”

“What?” Kiko asked, genuinely taken aback by the question.

“Why does everyone say that ‘age has nothing to do with being an adult’? I’m three-hundred years old! I’ve seen and done far more than a nineteen year old angel! No matter what kind of life she’s had to live! So why does everyone I’ve known insist that I’m still as young as Key is?! Even the servants at my father’s castle always looked down on me. That isn’t fair!”

The demon leveled his gaze with Rick’s seriously. There wasn’t a trace of mockery in his voice when he spoke. “A three-hundred year old prince who has lived his whole life in luxury is the furthest thing from an adult there could ever be. I don’t care what experiences you have, you are not mature yet. Deny it all you want, I’m not wrong. I know this, because I’ve been there. Believe me, leaving all that garbage behind was the best thing I’ve ever done and it’s what made me realize what being a grown-up is actually like. Kamakazi is a grown-ass woman despite being very, very young and you know exactly what the circumstances behind that are. I know you aren’t trying to trivialize what she’s gone through, what she’s going through, but trying to say you are more of an adult that her only because of numbers is nothing short of being childish.”

Rick let out a huff and turned away from him. The beginnings of tears stung in his eyes and he spoke very quietly. “I’m not… I’m not trying to say Kama isn’t an adult. I just… I don’t… Why won’t you accept that I’m not a child anymore? I may not be ‘mature’ but I’m not a child.”

With a sigh, Kiko reached out a hand and laid it firmly on his shoulder. “You probably don’t want to hear this, but I get what you’re going through. We all reach a point where we want others to see us in a different way, and it seems like everyone is so against doing just that. Relax. The harder you try to change a person’s perspective, the harder it is for them to actually change it.”

“That isn’t comforting at all, you know.”

“I’ve never claimed to be good at this.” The demon admitted. “But look… If you want me to treat you like an adult, you’re going to have to prove to me that you are one. There’s no other way for it. It’s a hard truth, yes, but the only one.”

A short silence fell over them. Kiko retracted his hand from the young white demon. Sometime after Kamakazi came to the top of the stairs to call down that she too was going to bed. Kiko bid her a good night, and Rick called half-heartedly for her to rest well. Once they heard the door to her room click shut, the younger of the two drew a deep breath.

“So you want me to prove that I am not a child?”

“Pretty much.” Kiko replied calmly.

In the blink of an eye, Rick practically threw himself across the sofa and onto Kiko’s lap. While the demon was still reeling from that surprise, Rick cupped his face with both hands and roughly pressed their lips together. He pulled away barely a centimeter and Kiko opened his mouth to say…something…even he wasn’t sure what, and Rick took that as an opportunity to dive back in and slip his tongue passed Kiko’s lips.

Kiko stared, wide-eyed, at the boy kissing him. Rick vigorously licked at him, trying to explore his mouth and coax the demon into responding. Seconds ticked by, and Kiko found his eyes slipping closed. Against his better judgement his own mouth began to respond to the boy’s persuasion. Rick let out a soft groan when he finally felt the demon’s tongue slide passed his own. Gingerly Kiko’s hands found their way to the boy’s hips, where they held him gently for stability. The white demon continued to lead their kiss, Kiko responding only in kind, until the boy couldn’t take it any longer and had to back off, breathing heavily.

The two stared at each other for a long moment before Rick grinned confidently and murmured, “So, what did you think of _that_?”

“ _Wow…_ ” Kiko breathed, eyes half-lidded. Rick’s confidence inflated for the briefest of seconds before the demon grinned devilishly back at him. “I think you’ve never kissed anyone before in your life! Because even a _child_ could kiss like you just did.”

Shock flashed across Rick’s features for a fraction of a second before rage overtook it. “Oh yeah, I’d like to see you do better, Mr. Know-It-All!”

Just as quickly as Rick had thrown himself at Kiko, the demon uprooted the boy from his lap and laid him out on his back across the sofa and pinned him there. The boy yelped in surprise, quickly finding a hand pressed against his mouth.

“Sshh!” Kiko warned. “Don’t wake the girls. Just tell me to stop or push me away if you want me to.”

Rick barely got a chance to nod his understanding before Kiko’s hand was replaced with his lips. Hesitantly, Rick responded. The demon peppered his lips and the corners of his mouth with little kisses before very tenderly nipping his bottom lip. The boy gasped and Kiko swiped his tongue across his open mouth. It was Rick who peeked his tongue out seeking entrance to the demon’s mouth, and Kiko let their tongues meet. Slowly, sensually, Kiko dragged his across Rick’s before slipping into his mouth fully to explore. It was Rick’s turn to play follow-the-leader, and he did his best to mimic the way Kiko’s tongue slipped and teased at every corner of his mouth that it could reach. Just as Rick began to think he was getting the hang of it, Kiko backed off and nipped at his tongue before sucking on it. The demon pulled away from him a second later and smirked at the bewildered and hazy look in the boy’s eyes and the deep blush on his cheeks.

“And that concludes Making-Out 101. There won’t be a test, but I think you’d do well to remember the material we just covered anyway.” He said playfully, lightly touching a finger to Rick’s lips before getting off of him entirely. “I’m gonna turn in now. Don’t be up too late, _young man_.”


	16. Getting Back Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiko's recovery is gradual, but steady!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I skip around the timeline a lot. I'm not particularly sorry about it. That's just how this series is.
> 
> Rating: G  
> Characters: Kiko, Rick

It had been a very long morning. Kiko had been up for at least half an hour when Rick came to check on him. The elf had been gradually feeling better and gaining more energy, even getting up and moving around a little bit with the help of somebody else. But it had been the first time Kiko had been awake before his friend had come in. Rick had said the usual things, “how are you” and “get some more rest, you needn’t be up yet”. Kiko tried to take what he said to heart, but if he was honest things were getting very dull very quickly. Noon came and went, somehow, and Rick’s mate had arrived to deliver him something to eat and to clean up the dishes afterward. He laid on his bed for a while longer before grumbling and sliding his legs over the edge of the bed. He stood on unsteady legs and wobbled a little before taking his first solo steps in some weeks. He was careful, though, and stayed near something he could lean on if he lost his strength, footing, or balance.

He looked down at himself and frowned. He knew he looked a mess and decided he’d get a shower. The hot water felt heavenly the moment he stepped into the stream. As he slowly but surely began to clean himself up, he felt himself getting back some of his strength thanks to his body relaxing in the warmth.

A knock came to his bathroom door.

“Who is it?” he asked calmly.

“Rick.”

“Here to check on me again?” Kiko sighed. “Come in.”

The door opened and Rick closed it behind him again. The shower in Kiko’s bathroom had no door or curtain, but the two had seen each other naked enough that neither could care. Rick leaned against the wall and narrowed his eyes disdainfully at the elf. It was obvious that he wasn’t happy to see Kiko up and about on his own.

“Your mother is here. She and I are going to be having a little chat this afternoon. I was wondering if you would care to join us.” Rick informed him.

“What time?”

“Three o’ clock. We’re got a little over an hour and a half.”

Kiko breathed a sigh and picked up a bottle of shampoo. “Yeah, sure. I haven’t seen her in a while.”

There was a short pause in their conversation while Kiko washed his hair. When he got around to rinsing it, Rick spoke up again. “So you’re feeling well enough to be on your feet. But I’ll ask anyway because you’re the type who’d tough these things out. How are you feeling? Be truthful.”

Again the elf breathed a sigh. “Everything still hurts. A lot. And my joints ache and my muscles burn when I move even a little. But as you said, I can tough it out.” He turned off the shower and made to leave it, Rick stepping out of the way for him. Kiko reached for a hairbrush that was sitting on the counter and Rick intervened, picking it up and offering to do it for him. Kiko sat on the edge of the bathtub and let him. “You can scold me all you want for being up and about, but I feel like I’m either going to die of boredom or oversleeping if I stay in bed any longer.”

“Can somebody die of too much sleep?” Rick asked, starting to pick through the many knots that had accumulated in the elf’s long tresses.

“I’d rather not find out.”

As the king worked, he glanced up at the mirrors on the wall. They were all fogged over. Looking back down at the naked elf he was helping, a thought occurred to him.

“Have you seen what you look like yet?”

Kiko grimaced, although Rick could not see that. “I haven’t. I purposefully avoided the mirror when I came in.” he raised one of his hands and looked it over. It was so, so pale. And his nails were short and blunt. Not to mention it just looked smaller in general. “Everything around me seems so big. Except for me. I can’t imagine what I must look like right now.”

“If I were to guess, I’d say you’ve lost about ten inches.” Rick stated calmly.

The elf groaned. “Great, I’m smaller than Delalo now.” He let out a huff. “Well, at least standing up and walking aren’t as hard as they could be. Sure, it’s a pain, but at least I’m not off-balance. Hooray for having a lowered center of gravity.”

The two fall silent again and in that time Rick managed to finish getting Kiko’s hair brushed. As he set down the hairbrush, Kiko asked if he could braid it for him, too. Rick agreed, although he did ask why. Kiko’s answered that he didn’t want it to get all messy again so easily when he was still not feeling back to normal. The king had a laugh at that and set to his new task.

“You’re really gently, you know that?” Kiko asked, deciding that he liked the way Rick’s fingertips softly ran across his scalp and through his hair.

“I used to do this sort of thing for my mother.”

“Ah, right.”

It was no secret to those who knew Rick personally that the whole reason he had been cast out by his family was because of his color-blindness. It had apparently been something he had been able to keep from his parents for many, many years. As Rick had put it, he had been helping his mother get ready one morning when she had asked him to get her a ribbon for her hair and he had unfortunately brought the wrong color. It had raised suspicion, and when his father had been told the man had somehow dragged the truth out of him. Rick had always refused to say anything more about what happened.

When the king finished braiding his friend’s hair and had tied it neatly, Kiko reached back to run a hand over it. The elf smiled and half-turned to thank him. A few seconds ticked by wherein Rick decided to remove the strands of hair from his brush.

“So… What are the chances of getting you to fuck me before we visit with my mom?” Kiko asked.

Rick sighed and cast him a serious look. “Until you are willing to see yourself in the mirror, I do not want to see you beneath me.” A flash of mischievousness crossed Kiko’s features, and before he could say anything Rick added, “ _Or_ above me.”

Kiko shrugged. “Can’t blame a guy for trying…” he muttered.

The king shook his head. “You really should be resting.”

“You keep saying that.” The elf grumbled. He got back to his feet and fetched a towel to begin drying himself off properly.

“I keep saying it because it would be for the best. Did you remember to bring in a change of clothes?”

Kiko pointed to a small pile on the counter. “I think they’re going to be a little big on me. I was practically swimming in the clothes I had on when I got up.”

“I’ll see if you sister can make or pick out some new ones for you. Well, I’ll be waiting outside. Take your time.”

“Yeah, I’ll be out shortly.”

*****

Kiko opened the door and stood aside to allow Rick to step passed him and into the small sitting room where the former queen was already waiting. Her head turned at the expected intrusion and her eyes widened at the sight of her son. While Kiko shut the door behind then, the woman stood to greet Rick warmly. Rick took her hand and kissed it, returning her friendly greeting. She then turned her attention back to Kiko.

“You’re looking far more worse for wear than I expected.” She commented, her eyes roaming over him. “I won’t ask what happened or why, but seeing you like this is concerning.”

“I’ll tell you about it later, Mom.” Kiko replied.

She smiled faintly. “Of course.” When she continued, her tone was far more chipper than before. “Well, at the very least you are still making an effort to look your best. That is good. A king’s guard should always look his best when in the presence of a guest.”

Kiko let out yet another sigh. The demon king and the former queen took their seats across from one another. Under normal circumstances Kiko would have stayed by the door, standing guard, but Rick motioned for him to take a seat on the couch beside him. Feeling his knees and ankles already crying out for relief, Kiko obliged without protest.

Rick folded his hands neatly in his lap and addressed the woman. “Now then, Tiffany, what is it you wanted to discuss?”


	17. An Angel's First Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Delalo takes Keyontay's virginity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Making use of that underage warning! Also, a rare F/F bit of smut from me. I'll admit I do not have much practice at this type, but hopefully it's good.
> 
> Rating: E  
> Characters: Delalo, Keyontay

Delalo wrapped her arms around Keyontay’s neck, pulling the angel just a fraction closer to herself. Keyontay smiled into their kiss, breaking it off after a moment to gaze down at her shorter girlfriend. They’d made up their minds earlier, but for everything to finally be happening was…well it was exciting, certainly, but also intimidating. It must have shown on her face because Delalo frowned.

“You wanna stop?” the demon asked.

“What?”

“You look nervous, so I’m giving you an out. We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

The angel shook her head vigorously. “No! I mean, I _am_ nervous, but I want to do this.” Keyontay replied. She glanced away shyly. “I can’t say I’ve ever imagined doing this with another girl before… I haven’t exactly imagined doing it with anyone… But I want this. I want to have sex with you, here and now.”

Delalo gazed fondly up at her before rising back up onto her tiptoes in order to kiss her again. The angel’s hands on her hips slid to her back and her arms held the demon tightly, bringing their bodies together. Their kisses remained brief, almost gentle, but ever increasing in intensity. The demon slipped her tongue passed their lips, earning a squeak of embarrassment from Keyontay. Before Delalo could pull away out of fear of moving too quickly, the angel tightened her hold on her and responded in kind with her own tongue. Mildly impressed by the other girl’s eagerness, Delalo led their kiss as she often did. They had made out a few times before, but the angel was still wholly unskilled at it. Not that it mattered much to Delalo. Just the slick sensation of their tongues sliding against one another and the way Keyontay’s breath would occasionally hitch as she forgot how to breath was plenty. Besides, there would always be time to teach her how to kiss properly. Later.

To the demon’s surprise, she felt one of Keyontay’s hands grip the bottom of her shirt. A second later that same hand was lifting the fabric and the angel’s free hand slid beneath it, shyly caressing Delalo’s lower back. As much as Delalo wanted to tease her, to say something like “look at you being brave” she resisted. Instead she slid her own hands down from the angel’s neck, where she’d had her arms loosely wrapped around, and to her collarbones. Every fiber of the demon’s being wanted to go further still, to reach just a bit lower in order to cup the angel’s breasts. But again, she resisted. Keyontay surprised her again by reaching further up her back and hooking a finger into the back of her bra.

“Can I…?” Keyontay asked, cheeks beautifully darkened and voice weak from nerves.

“Only if I can do the same.” Delalo replied.

The angel gave a single nod before making quick work of the little hooks. Delalo stepped back just a little and pulled off her own shirt and bra. Keyontay turned red as he eyes skimmed over her girlfriend’s bare chest. The demon smirked and reached around her girlfriend in order to repeat the action, lifting the angel’s shirt out of the way and easily pulling the little hooks free. As it seemed the angel was currently full of surprises, Keyontay also took half a step back and pulled her own shirt over her head, followed by discarding her bra entirely. Delalo couldn’t help the way she licked her lower lip as her eyes raked over her girlfriend’s toned form.

With a gentle push, Delalo sat Keyontay on the edge of the bed. The demon dived in for another brief kiss before putting her mouth to work on other parts of her body. She kissed across her jaw to her ear and then down to her neck. Her fangs lightly scraped the tender skin, leaving tiny red marks here and there. Keyontay’s breath hitched at every scratch, but her body was beginning to tremble. Unsure what she should be doing, the angel buried a hand in the demon’s hair and gripped the sheets at her side tightly.

Delalo worked her way slowly down Keyontay’s body. Her lips and tongue traced the line of her collarbone and then down between her breasts. One of Delalo’s hands caressed her hip before slowly moving upward, the tips of her claws ghosting over her skin in her hand’s wake. The first gentle touch to Keyontay’s breast pulled a short gasp from her lips, and Delalo lightly kneaded the soft flesh in her hand. The demon brought her mouth over to her other breast and exhaled a small breath over the tender nipple. Again the angel squeaked, but this time it was accompanied by her shutting her eyes tightly and worrying her bottom lip. Taking that as all the incentive she needed, Delalo flicked her tongue across the small bud before wrapping her lips around it and sucking softly. Her fingers pinched and rolled the other a little before going back to groping and caressing the breast itself.

After drawing out a few more choked breaths and moans in this manner, the demon’s mouth moved lower once again. The tip of her tongue glided down her ribs and over her abs. It circled around her navel and came to a stop at the hem of her skirt. Delalo placed a quick peck there before looking up at her partner.

“So, which would you prefer? My fingers, or my mouth?” she asked.

Speaking took some effort on Keyontay’s part, something that caught her off guard. She could form the sentences in her mind, but getting her voice to cooperate was a challenge unto itself. “U-um… I don’t… I don’t know? W-wouldn’t… Wouldn’t that t-taste weird?”

Delalo gave a shrug. “I’m actually partial to doing it that way. In fact, it’s one of the things I am quite confident in my skill for. As for the taste, well, there’s clearly only one way to find out.”

Before Keyontay had a chance to articulate anything, Delalo’s hands had hiked up her skirt and her fingers had hooked themselves into her shorts and underwear. The angel fidgeted a little before she raised herself off the bed to allow Delalo to remove both in one fell swoop. Keyontay stepped out of them and stood nervously as Delalo tossed them aside and looked back up at her.

“Either lie down or sit on the edge again. Whichever you think you’d be more comfortable with.” The demon told her before kissing her again.

Keyontay returned it, pressing a little more roughly. Slowly, shyly, she crawled up onto the bed and laid down on her back. Delalo climbed up with her. The angel’s instincts told her to keep her thighs together, but the soft, gentle way Delalo ran her hand over her thigh had her relax just a little. Slowly, with her face turning ever more red with each passing second, Keyontay spread her legs open. Delalo grinned and her hand wandered up passed the hem of her skirt. As her hand continued to climb, both of them could tell that Keyontay was trembling quite a lot. Nerves and arousal together, Delalo assumed. Her fingertips brushed a sensitive spot far up the angel’s inner thigh and the skin visible quivered.

“I promise this will be good.” Delalo whispered before kissing her inner thigh.

The first touch of the demon’s lips to the wet folds between Keyontay’s legs had her gasping loudly. Experimentally, Delalo slipped her tongue between them and bathed the whole area in one broad lick. The whole motion of it had the angel shuddering and tipping her head back further. The demon repeated it a few times, playing with the amount of pressure and speed. The ordeal made Keyontay clutch the sheets tightly in her fists and her toes curl. Delalo repressed a chuckle before getting more serious in her efforts.

Her tongue lapped around the short expanse before her, teasing with feather-light licks and rough, long drags, neither of which ever _quite_ hit exactly where Keyontay wanted them to. Somewhere in the back of the angel’s mind, she knew that Delalo was doing that on purpose.

_“She’s a demon, after all.”_ Was one of the last things the angel remembered thinking.

Delalo’s tongue continued to dance between the angel’s folds, drawing intricate little patterns between licks. Finally, the tip of her tongue pressed against Keyontay’s clit and the angel groaned loudly, arching her back into the touch. Satisfied with herself, the demon pressed against the inside of her thigh with one hand in order to keep her legs spread and doubled down on her task. Her attention was entirely on the small head now, showering it with tiny little flicks of her tongue, occasionally breaking the action with a quick kiss or suck. It was working, and the whole of the angel’s body shook almost violently. If it weren’t for the hand on her thigh, Keyontay would’ve been squeezing Delalo’s head uncomfortably. As it was, the demon was somewhat amazed at how much effort she had to put into keeping them parted. She knew the angel was strong, but this was just driving that fact home all the more.

When the angel came, it was with a particularly nice arching of her back and a choked whine. Almost immediately the angel collapsed onto the bed, limp, and panting as if she had just sprinted a mile. Delalo withdrew from between her legs and eyed up the state her girlfriend was in. Keyontay gasped for breath and her eyes cracked open a small fraction, just in time to catch Delalo licking her lips clean.

The angel swallowed roughly, throat dry. “So…tingly…” she whispered.

Delalo chuckled at that. “You’re amazing.” She stated, leaning down to give her exhausted girlfriend a quick peck on the lips. “Take you time but,” the demon sat up and leaned her back against the wall, “come here when you’re ready.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than Delalo slipped a hand into her own pants. The demon breathed out a contented sigh as she began to work herself over.

Keyontay couldn’t just watch. She forced her strength and the feeling in her limbs to return at least enough that she could sit up and crawl over to Delalo. The demon welcomed the kiss she offered and wrapped her free arm around her neck. Keyontay didn’t really know what to do, so she did the only thing that came to mind besides kissing Delalo silly. She splayed a hand on the demon’s stomach and did her best to imitate the caressing touch Delalo had used on her, bringing her hand up to grope at one of her small breasts. Delalo’s breath hitched just a little, and a pleased grin spread across her features. The angel brought her lips to her neck and peppered it with kisses both fleeting and rough and everywhere in between.

Delalo’s own orgasm hit her quickly, and her whole body tensed. It wasn’t as vocal as Keyontay’s had been, but that was perhaps in part of Delalo biting her lip rather harshly. Seeing a tiny spot of blood forming beneath one of the demon’s fangs, Keyontay leaned in and wiped it away with her tongue. The demon exhaled a long breath and her eyes slipped open. She removed her hand from her pants and made to grab a few tissues from beside her bed. Keyontay quickly caught her wrist and swiped her tongue across one of her dirtied fingers. The angel’s face contorted and the demon chuckled.

“Well, not everyone is okay with the taste.” She muttered, pulling several tissues free.

“No, it’s not that…” the angel mumbled. “It’s… Weird. Certainly. But…” her cheeks lit up and she couldn’t look at her girlfriend. “It isn’t _bad_.”

Delalo laughed and handed her a couple of tissues. The two cleaned themselves up enough that they wouldn’t get the sheets dirty. Feeling a little odd about how she was dressed, Keyontay pulled her underwear back on, but otherwise the two remained as they were. The demon pulled her girlfriend close to her again and buried her nose in her hair. Keyontay giggled and cuddled up against Delalo’s chest.

“I can see why people really like sex.” Keyontay whispered.

Again the demon chuckled. “I’ll be happy to play around with you some more. My fingers aren’t too bad either, if I do say so myself.” She kissed the top of the angel’s head. “Or if you want to try having something penetrate you, I’ve probably got _something_ around here that would be to your liking.”

Again Keyontay turned red. “I… Yeah. That’d be fun to try.”


	18. Grief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the death of his beloved, Mikaru is an absolute mess. Delalo tries to help him.
> 
> But of course things won't always be so bleak and hopeless...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight incest warning, but hardly anything explicit.
> 
> Rating: T  
> Characters: Mikaru, Delalo, Rain

In the silence and darkness of the night, Mikaru lay on his bed staring idly up at the ceiling. He felt…numb. So many things had happened that day, and he really should be spending his time elsewhere doing something other than nothing. But…where should he be? He couldn’t even begin to think of an answer. What should he be doing? That, too, escaped him. He couldn’t even piece together what he should be feeling. He was a mess, and he knew it.

A soft knock sounded at his bedroom door before the knob turned and his younger sister poked her head in. Through the thin stream of light let in by the open door she could see the blank way he gazed above him, not truly seeing what was there. Silently as possible she slipped inside and closed the door behind her, casting the room back into darkness. She didn’t need the light to navigate the way to her brother’s bed, where she sat down on its edge. With a single hand, she reached out and touched Mikaru’s shoulder.

After a moment of silence, and without being prompted to, he spoke. “Hey, Delalo?” he asked, “What did you feel like?”

“When?” she inquired.

“When Jerry died.”

Delalo breathed a deep sigh and closed her eyes. That was so long ago now, but she could still vividly remember how she felt. Quietly, she answered him. “A lot of things. Sadness. Anger. Guilt. Hatred. That the world was being unfair. That things shouldn’t have turned out the way they did. That I should have been able to do something. …That I shouldn’t have done anything in the first place. Pain, mostly. There’s no one way to really describe grief.”

Slowly, her brother nodded, his eyes still trained on the ceiling. “And…what did you do?”

“What I think everyone does when they don’t know what else to do. I cried. A lot. I sat alone and sobbed. Everything that reminded me of him made me cry, and even those times when he came to mind for no reason I cried.”

“But you aren’t crying now.”

She shook her head. “I am not, no.”

“Why?”

“Because it was a long time ago.”

“Doesn’t it still hurt?”

“Of course it does. My son died. I miss him often, and every now and then I wonder what it would be like if I could have found a way to defy all the odds that nature had stacked against him and helped him live.”

“So you still love him?”

“I do. And I always will. But there’s no use in grieving like that forever. What’s done is done, and Jerry is dead.”

“So…what should I do?”

“That’s…that’s not something I can tell you. Everyone deals with grief differently.”

Mikaru’s eyes watered and slipped shut. “I don’t know what to do…”

Delalo’s hand slid from his shoulder and instead clasped his hand gently. “If you feel like you should cry, then cry. If you feel like you should be angry, then yell and scream and lash out at something. If you feel like blaming yourself, then do it. If you feel like you should hate the world and everything in it, then by all means you are welcome to. Just…don’t stagnate.”

Slowly tears slipped from the demon lord’s closed eyes. Weakly, his fingers curled over hers, grasping her hand, desiring the feeling of being grounded in reality.

_That’s right. This is reality. There’s no dream to be waking up from. Nothing is going to change even if I try to block out the world and deny it. I shouldn’t run away. And yet…_

“Delalo, will you hear me out?”

“Of course.”

“If… If I had been there, would things have turned out differently?”

After a moment of consideration, not on how to answer that but on whether or not she should, Delalo replied, “Yes.”

“If I had taken care of that angel on my own, he would still be here now.”

“Yes.”

More tears escaped from behind Mikaru’s eyelids. They spilled over the sides of his face, down his head, and behind his ears into his hair. “And if- And if I had healed him, he would not have died.”

“Yes.”

His voice cracked. “It’s all my fault he’s dead now.”

“No.”

He opened his eyes in surprised and stared blearily up at her. Delalo wanted so much to lean over and kiss his tears away and to be tender with him. But that was not what he needed right now. What he needed was a stern voice to tell him about reality.

“I don’t know what happened at the bottom of that cliff. But since you asked me about healing him, I know all too well that he was alive when you found him. Let me tell you: he would have _hated_ you if you had healed him. I was on top of the cliff with the triplets. I saw what happened to Faullin as it happened, and I saw her body afterward. He would not have been able to deal with living, knowing that she went out the way she did. It is not your fault he is dead. He is dead because that angel killed him.”

The demon lord’s tears had stopped falling, but by no means were his conflicted emotions done.

“I don’t care if he would have hated me. He hated me once before. I’d rather he be alive and hate me than to be dead!”

“That’s a bold-faced lie and you know it!” Delalo snapped.

The hurt in her brother’s eyes spoke volumes. “What do you know?”

“I know that if you truly thought that, he would not be dead.”

“So it _is_ my fault he died!”

“It is _not_!”

Their grip on each other’s hands was vice-like now as they glared at one another in the darkness. Angrily, Delalo raised their hands and planted a kiss to the back of her brother’s. She rubbed his knuckles with her thumb in an attempt to soothe him a little. The minutes ticked by and Mikaru had returned to staring at the ceiling wordlessly. He still looked angry, but it was passing with every moment, slowly being replaced with sadness yet again.

It must have been nearly fifteen minutes later when one of them spoke again.

“If-”

“Stop right there.”

Mikaru glared at her again. “Why?”

“Remember what I said about doing something to save Jerry? It doesn’t matter how many different ‘if’s you ponder. What’s in the past is in the past. You can think on ‘if’s on your own, but if you are going to ask _me_ any then I’m going to be frank with you. Understood?”

He clenched his jaw and sat upright, looking his little sister straight in the eyes and tightening his grip on her hand again. “If I had not fallen in love with him, would this not hurt as much?”

“It would not. But you know damn well that that is not how you would want things. Why? Because you know what it is like to have loved him. If you could turn back time and choose to not get close to him, you would still do it. You’d fall in love with him again and again, knowing full well how much it would hurt not just you, but him as well.”

“What good is it to love somebody if you know they are going to die too early?”

Delalo placed her free hand across the left side of her chest. “This is not an answer for everybody, but for me the reason is simple: so that I can hold onto my memories of them. The memories I have of my son are priceless to me. To remember the good times, as well as the bad, to know that he was once alive. That is my reason. You’ll have to come up with one for yourself on your own.”

He looked away from her, still upset. “I wish I had killed him myself instead of taken him in.”

His sister let out another sigh and stood up, releasing his hand in the process. “You are going to regret saying that eventually. Listen, Keero, I love you. I really and truly do. I am no stranger to grief like this, but I am not going to be kind about it. I was raised to be compassionate, but I know you. If all I do is console you, you’ll only beat yourself up more. If you want me to hear you out, I will, but I’ll keep telling you what I already have.”

“Then leave.” He muttered.

“I will.” She leaned down and placed a soft kiss to the small tear-streak beside his eye. “I love you.” She repeated before heading for the door. She was nearly out of the room when Mikaru whispered the words back to her, just loud enough that she could hear. She hesitated before stepping into the hall and closing the door again.

Mikaru laid down on his bed once more. He rolled onto his stomach and buried his face in a pillow, beginning to soak it with tears.

*****

“Hey Rain…” Mikaru muttered as he walked beside the man.

“Yeah?”

“Kiss me.”

Rain smiled and leaned down to press his lips to his master’s. Mikaru’s eyes slipped shut at the sensation. Warm and familiar and full of love. It was a feeling he knew all too well and yet he felt like he forgot all about it the moment their lips were no longer together.

“I love you.” The demon whispered when Rain pulled away a mere inch and looked him in the eye.

“Yeah. I know. And I love you, too.”

“I know. I just wanted to say it.”

“Reminding yourself?”

Mikaru nodded. “There’s a lot of things I feel like I need to remind myself of lately.”

“Such as?”

The demon leaned against him as they began to walk again. A gesture the vampire returned by putting an arm around his shoulders.

“That you’re here again. That I was being pathetic. That I should remember to thank my brother, sister, and Leia sometime. And…to apologize to Delalo while I’m at it.”

“Why do you need to apologize?”

He shook his head. “Many things. But mostly I think for making her take care of my emotional ass all these years. I really would be lost without her.”

“Well she is your advisor and right-hand woman for a reason.” The vampire chuckled.

“Yeah…” he sighed and turned a fond smile up at the scenery ahead of them. “I don’t deserve a sister like her.”


	19. All The Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein Mikaru gets everything he's ever wished for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided that I should make use of Rain being alive and to give my favorite character what he's always wanted most of all. <3
> 
> Rating: E  
> Characters: Mikaru, Rain

It started off innocently enough. Mikaru and Rain had spent the day sparring with one another. Mikaru insisted that he had weakened considerably, but Rain couldn’t see how he thought that. Sure, he was a little bit slower and he didn’t hit quite as hard, but the vampire wouldn’t have used “considerably”. He thought that perhaps it was just that his master was a bit out of shape, seeing as he had become so lazy over the years Rain had been dead. Really though, most of Mikaru’s strength came from his magic, as he had always been quite weak physically, and he had managed to keep his magical talents very sharp.

Both were sweating and very tired by the end of the day, and as much as Mikaru wanted to suggest that Rain carry him, he decided against it. He loved that the man was back by his side, and loved that he could touch and hug and kiss him once more. But Rain looked almost as beat as he felt, so despite knowing the vampire would have happily carried him, he spared him the effort.

Back in Mikaru’s chambers, things started to become less innocent. The moment the door was shut behind them, Mikaru peeled off his shirt and announced that he was going to get a bath. Rain was prepared to leave him be, perhaps to seek out his own former rooms and wash himself off there, but the demon threw a glance over his shoulder and grinned. Red eyes were mischievous as Mikaru made the offer for Rain to join him. Not assist him. _Join him_.

Rain flushed, pale cheeks turning a brilliant red. The number of times Rain had seen his master naked was probably in the thousands. It just came with the territory of being Mikaru’s favorite. In fact, most of those came about from helping to bathe or dress the man. However, the number of times he had actually been invited to share said bath with him could be counted on one hand. Rain found that he had absolutely no reason to turn his master down, so he followed him into the bathroom.

Things began as they would any time Rain joined him in the bathroom. He dutifully helped his master disrobe and washed his back, tail, and hair for him while Mikaru took care of everything else on his own. Once the demon was rinsed off, he sank down into the hot water of his bath and let out a contented sigh. Rain watched him for a moment, enjoying the way Mikaru’s eyes fluttered closed as the man relaxed. After a moment the vampire remembered that he was allowed to join him, and he quickly undressed and got himself cleaned up.

Rain was nearly done washing himself when his eyes drifted back over to where Mikaru was. He was startled to see the man leaning against the edge of the bath and staring at him, gaze unwavering despite being caught. Rain suddenly had to swallow back a lump that formed in his throat.

“Say…” Mikaru muttered. “The hot water is nice and all, but I don’t think it’s going to do the trick. I haven’t sparred with someone in quite a while. I’m going to be sore tomorrow, at this rate.”

The vampire blinked, his cheeks becoming dusted with pink. “Then after our bath, I’ll give you a massage.” He stated, hoping the hammering of his heart couldn’t be heard from where the demon was lounging.

Mikaru hummed at that proposal and grinned again. “Alright. I’ll let you do just that.” His eyes fell half-lidded, and Rain found it hard not to believe that Mikaru was giving him a sultry look on purpose. “But it’d better be a full-body one. I don’t want you stopping with just a back rub.”

A shiver ran down Rain’s spine, and he felt his nether regions stir. He tore his eyes away from his master in order to finish what he was doing, and thankfully Mikaru didn’t say anything else to him. By the time Rain joined him, he had settled down again. Mikaru made no move to provoke his minion, simply opening his eyes to acknowledge his presence in the bath before letting out a happy little sigh and sinking further back.

“You know, Master, you’re so small you could easily float even in this little amount of water. Don’t sink in too far.” Rain teased.

Mikaru snorted. “Afraid I’ll float away in my own bath?”

“Not at all. More like I don’t want you to get comfortable like that and fall asleep on me.”

The demon shrugged. “So what if I do? You’re here. I trust you’d be able to pick me up and dry me off and lay me in my bed.”

“I see what Delalo means when she said you’d become reliant on your minions.” The vampire chuckled.

“Are you kidding me? I’ve always been this spoiled.”

Rain’s eyes raked over the length of his master’s body. “Well then…” he flashed him a grin that went unseen. “I suppose that means I will have to try my best to make sure you continue to feel properly pampered, My Lord.”

The sloshing of water was all the warning Mikaru got before he was scoped up into Rain’s arms. The demon’s eyes flew open at the surprise, but he smirked up at the man carrying him out of the bath. Rain sat him on a short stool and toweled them both off quickly. As soon as they were reasonably dry, he lifted the demon again and hauled him into the man’s bedroom. Rain dropped him gently onto the bed, and with a playful nip to his pointed ear, Rain instructed him to lie on his stomach. Mikaru hummed and rolled over obediently, lying comfortably with his arms beneath his pillow.

Rain sat atop his master’s thighs and licked his lips as his eyes slowly slid over the man’s naked form. Despite the rough treatment Rain had given Mikaru earlier during their fight, his hands were now gentle in their task. He began with the back of the demon’s neck, kneaded small circles into the top of his spine before working out to his shoulders. Rain’s hands moved lower, down to Mikaru’s shoulder blades. The demon groaned appreciatively, and the sound sent another shiver through Rain’s body. Dutifully, he continued his task, kneading and rubbing the sore flesh of his master’s back as his hands moved ever lower.

When he reached Mikaru’s hips, the man wriggled a little. Rain tried not to think about it, but that became difficult when he shifted further down the man’s body to work on his legs. His fingertips slid passed the demon’s naked backside and instead both hands came to rest on one of his thighs. Rain kneaded the muscles there, and Mikaru noticeably squirmed and whined. The vampire sucked in a breath, forcing himself to focus. He worked his hands down the length of Mikaru’s leg, leaving no part unattended. When he got to the end, he carefully lifted the demon’s foot and rubbed the sole of it with his thumbs.

“Ready for me to do the other leg?” Rain asked, pressing a kiss to the inside of his master’s ankle.

“Yesss…” Mikaru replied. Rain wasn’t sure if he had been intending to groan and drag out the word the way he had, but it went straight to the vampire’s cock, which was almost at full attention.

The vampire noticed his hands were shaking when he went for Mikaru’s other leg. He also noticed that the hammering of his heart was back in full force, and he was fairly certain that his breathing was a little heavier than it probably should have been. Despite all of that, he continued to massage and work all the way down the leg, picking up and rubbing the sole of the foot again when he got to that point.

“Now… Either turn over, or let put your arms to your sides so I can work on them.” Rain instructed.

Mikaru considered his choices for a moment before pulling his foot from Rain’s hands and rolling over onto his stomach. Rain’s breath caught in his throat and he was definitely erect now.

The demon gazed up at him, eyes half-lidded and pupils blown wide. His long, red hair splayed out beneath him, arms raised above his head. He was breathing about as heavily as Rain was and, most importantly, just as hard. The vampire felt like his brain had short-circuited at the sight and he swallowed thickly. The things he and Mikaru had done in the past got quite intense at times, and Rain was no stranger to feeling Mikaru’s erection pressed against him through their clothing. But that had always been as far as things had gotten. They would always either pull away and one would leave in a hurry, or they would realize what they were doing and stop before things got out of hand. To actually see the demon naked and hard and showing no signs of wanting things to end where they were, Rain had to take a long, shuddering breath to steady himself.

Mikaru was certainly aware of the state Rain was in and smirked up at him. “Finish the job, and I’ll reward you.” He whispered enticingly.

Rain didn’t know what his master meant by that, but he had a few ideas. All of which he had to shake from the forefront of his mind in order to place his definitely-shaking hands back onto Mikaru’s body. Once more, he started from the top, kneading gently at the demon’s collarbones and steadily working down from there. When his hands pressed and rubbed against Mikaru’s chest and (erect) nipples, the demon tipped his head back and let out a shameless moan. Rain couldn’t help but notice the way his master’s cock twitched, too. The vampire had to bite his lip in order to resist leaning down and taking one of the small buds between his teeth.

As dutifully as ever, Rain continued with his task. He worked over his master’s ribcage, abdominals, sides, and hips with greatest care, pulling more whines and moans from the man beneath him. His hands quivered as he briefly considered taking Mikaru’s erection in hand and stroking it as he kept up the massage with his other hand. He didn’t, deciding that whatever the demon had meant by “reward” was intriguing enough to ignore what every other fiber of his being was telling him to do. Just as before, he worked both hands on one leg, starting from the sensitive inner thigh that made Mikaru squirm and going all the way down to his foot before switching and working on the next.

“Good boy~” Mikaru sang when Rain finished his task with another kiss to his ankle. The demon raised his arms and reached for his minion. “Come here…”

Rain leaned closer and allowed his master to cup his face, guiding him back up Mikaru’s body and down into a proper kiss. The demon’s lips were soft and pliant as ever, and they parted willingly before Rain even had a chance to ask permission. Their tongues met, the wet, hot dance all too familiar to both of them. It was Rain’s turn to make a sound, groaning heavily as his shaky arms caused him to lower himself down onto the demon’s body more, the feeling of heated skin on heated skin making him forget himself just a little.

It was Mikaru who broke their kiss. They both panted briefly, and the demon craned his head away to one side. He didn’t have to say it for Rain to know what that meant. The “reward” he had been promised was most certainly this, and although the vampire would typically turn his nose up at the blood of anyone but a human woman, he eagerly dove in to partake of his master’s offer. His fangs scrapped along the skin until Rain found the exact spot he wanted. With a deep breath, he sank them into the tender flesh, causing Mikaru to breathe in sharply beneath him.

The coppery taste filled Rain’s senses, and he instinctively clenched his jaw, just a little. Just enough to pierce his master’s neck again with the shorter fangs on the bottom row of his teeth. The vampire groaned deeply, carefully sliding his fangs from Mikaru’s flesh and instead lavishing the wounded area with his tongue. The demon mewled, body writhing beneath Rain’s. Rain knew better than to worry about hurting him, having bitten the man enough to know that Mikaru enjoyed it.

As if to reaffirm this, the demon’s back arched at the next drag of Rain’s tongue against his neck, erection pressing firmly into the vampire’s stomach. Another shiver ran down Rain’s spine when he was reminded of how hard his master, and himself, was. He moaned when he felt Mikaru grind up against him again, this time a lot more deliberately. He raised his head in order to lock eyes with the man beneath him. Mikaru cast him an amused, but entirely aroused, grin and one of his arms fell from where they had been looped around Rain’s shoulders. He pointed vaguely in the direction of one of his bedside tables.

“There’s a bottle of lube in the bottom drawer.” He stated.

Rain swallowed again, his eyes not leaving the demon’s. “Master… Please do not tease me…”

“Who said anything about teasing? I told you where the lube is kept. If anything you’re the one who is teasing by not reaching for it.” Mikaru answered him simply.

“A-are you listening to yourself? Master, if I… If _we_ …! What about your promise?!”

“For as long as you lived, _that_ was my promise. You died…and now you’re back. As far as I’m concerned, I kept my promise!” he raised his hand again and touched Rain’s cheek tenderly. “Now are you going to leave me high and dry, or are you going to find that lube?”

With a deep breath, Rain shifted off of his master in order to lean over the edge of the bed and to dig through the drawer. Beside him, he felt Mikaru move as well, but it wasn’t until he found what he was looking for and sat upright again that he saw what he had done. Mikaru had lifted his legs, bending them at the knee and resting his feet flat against the bed. That alone rid Rain of the one remaining question he had about the situation and he let out a slow breath to steady himself.

“For the record…” Rain began, “I have never had sex with another man, and Faullin wasn’t into butt stuff.”

“I’m aware. Give it here.” Mikaru told him and held out his hand for the lube. Once he had it, he grabbed Rain’s wrist and tugged him closer. “I, however, _have_ and am.” The demon applied a generous amount to Rain’s fingers and guided them down to his entrance. “No need to be gentle, not with me. In fact, _do_ be a little rough. I like it that way.”

Rain shuddered again and his eyes fell to where his master wanted him to be working. He of course knew how anal sex worked in theory, but that was the extent of his knowledge. Nervously he teased at the ring of muscles. Mikaru wriggled beneath him and took Rain by surprise by pressing farther against him, forcing his finger inside. Startled but also thrilled, Rain began to thrust the single digit in and out of the small demon. Mikaru whined and demanded that he add another finger almost immediately. Rain obliged.

Seeing how well Mikaru took to having both fingers inside of him, Rain quickly added a third after very little time. He spread and thrust them, smearing the lube deep inside of his master and getting his insides used to being stretched open. Finally Rain did something he had heard about before and tried curling his fingers just a little inside of the demon. He knew he hit the right spot when Mikaru moaned lowly and clutched at the blanket beneath him, claws threatening to tear through the fabric. The demon whined again when Rain removed his fingers.

“So…should I, I dunno, add more lube or…?” He asked, finding it incredibly difficult to resist simply thrusting into his master immediately.

“Just go!” Mikaru snapped, spreading his legs wider. “Stop making me wait!”

Rain couldn’t help but chuckle at his master’s impatience. It was rare for him to see the man not take something slow, and he quite enjoyed the change. He lifted Mikaru’s legs and the demon wrapped them around his hips. The vampire lined himself up and carefully pressed the head of his cock in. Mikaru whimpered, but didn’t object. Rain briefly considered sliding in slowly to give him time to adjust, but only briefly. Instead he gave a sharp snap of his hips and sank into the tight, wet, heat all at once. The demon moaned and his back arched up off the bed in a way that Rain thought might have been painful.

“There you go… Now you’re getting it…” Mikaru whispered to him encouragingly. “Don’t be so damn gentle!”

Rain nodded and pulled out almost all the way before slamming back in. Mikaru hummed appreciatively and draped an arm around Rain’s shoulder to grip him tightly. Rain set a harsh, fast pace, spurred on by his master’s steady stream of gasps, moans, and panting breaths. He felt the claws on the hand on his back curl against his skin before moving to comb through his short brown hair. He followed the motion easily and met Mikaru in a sloppy, open-mouthed kiss. The simple act felt like electricity through his body and he dragged his master closer by his hips, thrusting into him harder. Mikaru’s other hand joined the one in Rain’s hair, and their kiss broke a moment later.

“Make me come just like this.” The demon murmured against his lips. “I want to come with you deep inside of me.”

It was Rain’s turn to moan and his rhythm became erratic. His grip on Mikaru’s hips tightened to the point where he was sure his master would be bruised from it. Again he met the demon’s lips, but only briefly before leaned down to swipe his tongue across the dried blood from the bite wounds he had inflicted earlier. It made Mikaru squirm again and Rain felt pinpricks against the back of his head from the demon’s claws.

“Fuuuck!” Mikaru whined. “I’m close! Please…I want you to come inside me!” he practically begged.

Who was Rain to say no to a request like that? He thrust into his master a few more times, tongue ridding the demon’s neck of all traces of blood, and emptied himself deep inside of Mikaru. The demon moaned and shivered at the sensation. The feeling causing him to come as well, dirtying both of their stomachs in doing so. Rain pulled out, leaving Mikaru to whine again at suddenly being empty. Rain sat up and pulled the demon onto his lap and into another kiss, hands kneading and massaging his ass roughly.

“You were amazing…” Mikaru praised him against his lips before pressing another kiss to them. “A solid A-.”

The vampire couldn’t help but laugh. “A-, huh? Considering I was a B student, I can live with that. But I take it you’ve got some tips for improvement?”

Mikaru pulled away enough to look him in the eyes. He ran the back of his hand across the vampire’s cheek, grinning when Rain turned his head to plant a kiss to his wrist.

“I do. Starting with next time we should do it from behind. I find that to be the best way to come out of this sort of thing bruised up.”

“Do you normally do it this way?”

Mikaru raised an eyebrow. “How do you mean?”

“You know…when you’re with another guy. Are you usually the one who is on the receiving end like this?”

The demon smirked and gave Rain a quick peck on the lips. “I am. It’s one of the reasons why I am so choosey about who I sleep with.”

“You know, before now I never would have guessed that to be the case. But now that I think about it…” Rain nipped at his bottom lip playfully. “It makes perfect sense. You can just lie back or kneel on all fours and take it.”

Mikaru narrowed his eyes at that remark. He placed his hands on the vampire’s shoulders and gave him a shove, forcing him back onto the bed. Rain’s eyes flew open in surprise as Mikaru straddled his hips and smirked down at him, hands splayed across his chest.

“However, I have been known to ride my partners, if they’ve earned it.”

Rain grinned broadly. “Oh? And how do I earn such a pleasure?” he asked, hands resuming their fondling of his master’s backside.

“Hmm, well first… How about you tell me all of the dirty little things you’ve ever thought about doing to me? I think that would be a _great_ place to start.”

The vampire’s face colored, just a little. “All of them? That might take a while. In fact, it might take me a while just to come to terms with what we’ve just done in the first place.”

“Oh, I think we’ve got time…” Mikaru whispered before leaning down to steal another kiss from him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: The world needs more small guys doing the topping!  
> Also Me: Okay but how about Mikaru just getting WRECKED by bigger dudes? And _LOVING_ it!?  
>  Me: Mmm, yeah… B) That’s good shit right there…


	20. Rico's Magic Lesson 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rico has made a lot of progress with her magic, but there's still a long ways for her to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops this actually took me more than a year to get back to!  
> Warning for inflicting minor injuries upon oneself.
> 
> Rating: G  
> Characters: Rico, Rita, Mikaru, Rain

“I really wish there was a better way to do this. I can’t say I like seeing you cut yourself open, even a little.” Rico muttered.

“It doesn’t hurt that much. Besides, I can heal myself even if you fail, and you’re too much of a wimp to inflict harm upon yourself in order to practice. This way is fine.” Rita replied. Calmly she dug one of her claws beneath the scales on the back of her forearm, a few beads of red spilling out from the wound.

Rico grimaced as she watched her friend harm herself for the umpteenth time that day just to help her practice. With a small huff, Rico took hold of her friend’s wrist and laid her other hand gently over the injury. Her face twisted as she concentrated. She could heal small wounds about eighty percent of the time now, but she was still anxious about using her magic. She focused, imagining the wound healing beneath her hand as she channeled her magic through her body and into her hand. Rita felt a tingling in her arm, and the thin space between it and Rico’s hand glowed softly with a pale light. When Rico released her arm, the cut she had made was completely healed over.

“That makes seven times in row. A new record for you.” Rita stated, examining the lack of damage. “Even my scales are less ruined.”

Rico sighed heavily. “I suppose progress is progress, although I was kind of hoping to be able to do more by this point.”

Before Rita could say anything back, the two girls were interrupted. Mikaru had apparently decided to get some fresh air and just so happened to choose the courtyard they were practicing in in order to get it. Rain followed dutifully at his heels. The two girls looked up at them, startled by their sudden presence.

“Good afternoon, Lord Mikaru!” Rico called out, a little smile playing at her lips. She turned to look at Rain, and she was momentarily caught off guard when she met his eyes. Beside her and oblivious to Rico’s perturbed state, Rita quietly nodded her own greeting.

“Hello girls.” Mikaru replied, approaching them. “I take it the two of you are still working on your magic, Rico?”

“We are. And I’m getting better!” she replied, grinning a little more brightly and almost forgetting how unsettled she had just been. “I can actually use it now! Although I’m still not very good…”

“May I see your progress?” the demon lord asked.

Rico glanced at her friend. With little thought to it, Rita repeated her actions to inflict a small bit of damage to herself. Once more Rico took hold of her friend’s arm and focused all of her efforts into healing her. It took a few seconds longer due to being nervous in front of an audience, but she once again managed to mend the small cut until it was as good as new.

“And that makes eight in a row…” Rita muttered, inspecting her arm again.

Mikaru nodded, obviously pleased with what he had just witnessed. He took another couple of steps closer to them and sat down on the grass beside the two girls. Glancing back at Rain, he patted the space beside him and the man quietly joined them as well. A moment passed wherein no one spoke and Mikaru appeared to be thinking about something. During that very short span of time, Rico stared up at Rain again, growing ever wearier of his eye color.

“So…this might sound dumb of me to ask, but are we related?” she finally asked, glancing Mikaru’s way.

The demon lord jumped a little, having completely forgotten that the two girls had never met Rain. Rita also appeared to be intrigued by this, and Rain too looked like he had been wanting to ask. Mikaru laughed at his own forgetfulness and decided that introductions were in order.

“Right, right. Of course. Rico, Rita, I would like for the two of you to meet Rain.” He stated. Before he could properly give Rain both of their names, Rico shrieked in surprise.

“Wait! This guy is my dad’s dad?!” she shouted, pointing at him and gaping in disbelief.

Rain blinked, startled by her reaction. “You’re…” he turned his shocked stare down at Mikaru. “I have a grandkid!?”

Mikaru couldn’t help but laugh again. “Didn’t I tell you? You have four of them.”

“What the _fuck!?_ Why has no one told me about this?”

Rico giggled. “You do sound like Uncle Jake.”

Rain let out a groan and ran a hand over his face. “Yeah, that boy always did have a foul mouth, didn’t he? So…whose kid are you?”

“Getting back to the introductions…” Mikaru interrupted in order to continue explaining, “Rain, this is Rico. She’s Rory’s daughter.”

The vampire was momentarily dumbfounded. “You mean to say Rory actually got some girl pregnant? Wow. Took him long enough. Most guys would kill for his kind of luck…”

The demon lord then gestured to Rita. “And this is Rita. She’s Que’s kid.”

Rain’s jaw went slack, somehow even more stunned than before. “ _Que_ got some girl pregnant?! Lord, what has been going on since I died?! Up is down, left is right, there’s chaos in the streets, and cats are sleeping with dogs!”

All three of those the vampire was sitting with had to laugh at that. Mikaru laid a hand on his shoulder and promised to fill him in on the details later. He turned his attention back to Rico, still curious about her progress with her magic. He asked if healing small cuts and scrapes was all that she could do. With some sadness she replied that that was true.

“I see… Well, it is certainly better than before and I don’t intend to demean the progress you have made. But…” Mikaru got back to his feet and took a few steps back. “Rain, you might want to shield your eyes.”

The vampire did just that, gently laying a hand over them. Mikaru created a small ball of light and Rico felt her skin prickle. Beside her, Rain shuddered. The demon lord tossed it back and forth between his hands a couple of times, glancing around them in order to select his target. He then hurled the light ball across the courtyard where it struck a stone pillar. There was a brief flash of white, and the stone was noticeably scorched. Mikaru sat back down while the two girls stared at the damage.

“You can look again.” The demon instructed his minion. Rain removed his hand and opened his eyes once more. Mikaru waited another moment before speaking up again. “By itself, light is generally not harmful. It can cause damage to certain races, such as vampires and even most demons. But if you want to use it in a fight, it is best to combine it with another element. What I just did was mix in a bit of fire, if you couldn’t tell. Mixing them together in the right amounts is a great way to give form to the light without losing out on its own properties. But of course if you overdue the fire, or whatever else, the light may as well not be there.” He explained.

“But I can’t use fire.” Rico pointed out. “You said dark magic was what I’m meant to be good with.”

“The principal is the same.”

The girl sighed. “Did you forget that I don’t even have any idea how to use dark magic? How am I supposed to combine what I can’t even do in the first place? Besides, I can barely handle healing scrapes and bruises.”

Mikaru leaned in a little closer to her, gazing at her curiously. “Tell me, have you shown any signs of being a reaper since you have begun to use magic?”

“Reaper?” Rain asked, although his question went unanswered aside from a quick glance from Mikaru that reminded him that he would be filled in about certain details later.

Rico blinked. “…No? I don’t even know what the signs would be.”

The demon nodded, mostly to himself. “Believe me, you would know if you did. Right then.” He suddenly got to his feet and motioned for Rain to join him. The vampire did. “I would like for you to keep practicing. In your current state there isn’t a whole lot I could do to teach you, and we don’t yet know if you are anything but a mutt. Any progress is good, even if it is only getting your streak up to nine. Keep at it, and come find me when you can handle an injury that actually hurts.”

“Right. Okay.” Rico replied, not entirely sure what he was talking about. She turned her attention to Rain again. “Um, it was nice to finally meet you…Grandpa…”

Rain flashed her a grin. “You too, kid. Rico, yes?” she nodded. “Good, I got it right. I’ll try to keep your names straight.” He gestured between her and Rita to emphasize his point. “Keep at it. Your father and uncles all had to learn this stuff, too.”

“Thanks.”

With another wave from Rain, Mikaru, and Rico and another nod from Rita, the two men sought out a more private space to relax outdoors. Rico and Rita waited until they were out of earshot before returning their attention to each other.

“I can see why everyone says my grandpa’s eyes are pretty.” Rico laughed, a bit embarrassed at herself for saying it out loud. “No wonder Lord Mikaru’s so taken with my family’s eyes…”

Rita gave a shrug. “They _are_ nice, but I think I prefer the shade yours are. Golden-brown’s not so intense, and cuter.”

The half-angel’s cheeks flushed brightly and she lightly shoved her friend on the shoulder. “Don’t say things like that so casually!”

Unperturbed, the dragon only shrugged again. “I’m only saying what I mean.” Rico turned an even brighter shade of red, and Rita decided to cut her a little slack. “Shall we get back to practicing?”

Rico sighed, still not over the sudden compliments. “Yeah, I suppose so…”


	21. Meeting of Lords and Brotherly Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikaru is stuck going to a meeting with other lords and the UnderWorld's king. As the king is still relatively new, opposition to him is not completely stamped out yet. Especially due to the circumstances in which he became king. Mikaru is tired of said opposition...
> 
> THEN
> 
> Mikaru and Kiko take a quiet moment up on the roof to bond in a more than brotherly way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a thing I wrote...probably two or three months before I started doing all this more seriously. I've referenced what happened in this a couple of times in other chapters, so I feel like it would be good to share it with the Ao3 crowd. This also takes place before Rain was revived, and even before Alone with the King~
> 
>  **WARNING:** threats of violence/death, explicit M/M incest!  
>  Rating: E  
> Characters: Mikaru, Kiko, Tiffany, Red, Delalo, Leia

The meeting had barely started and already there was unrest in the room. It was customary that every few months most of the UnderWorld’s lords would gather at the king’s castle in order to discuss all things political, from change in leadership to various lords trying to make a better name for themselves with the king or other lords. They had all arrived the night before and had that night to rest from their travels. Once morning came and all were fed, the meeting that would likely last all day at minimum began. Not even an hour in and a lord decided it would be a good idea to start causing trouble.

“Would somebody be so kind as to explain to me why all of us are even letting this Whitey asshole speak?!” he shouted, pointing a finger at King Rick who was currently standing and had just been addressing the room.

“Because he is the king.” Another lord answered. Several other lords in the room let out groans and mumbles along the lines of “Not this again”.

“Is he, though? Last time I checked, King Red and Queen Tiffany are still alive.” The lord who had started everything stood and dramatically turned to his left, facing where the two individuals in question were sitting. “In fact, they’re both right there! Who said Whitey here could be king when they’re still breathing?!”

“I agree!” Yet another lord shouted. “I do not acknowledge Rick to be our king! It is a long standing tradition that the new king must take the throne by force; by killing those who had been in power!”

“Not to mention he’s not even a real demon!”

“Are you kidding me?! King Rick was placed in power by the very two you are trying to claim ought to be dead! Don’t you think that tends to mean they don’t _want_ to be in power any longer?!”

“Then they should just go ahead and _die_ and let the rest of us fight it out amongst ourselves as to who gets to lead us!”

“What, do _you_ want to take the throne?”

“I’d probably make a better king than this bastard!”

“I’d like to see you try and kill _anyone_ , you spineless coward!”

The shouting continued. Over half the room was screaming in no time at all, some for and some against the current ruler. Some were even trying to claim that it wasn’t an issue, as King Rick had been elected by the former king and queen, and was therefore clearly no more than a pawn to them. Of the nearly three dozen men and women in the room, only eight remained silent on the whole matter. Amongst them were former-King Red, former-Queen Tiffany, King Rick, his personal guard Kiko, and Lord Mikaru.

“If anything, I would rather see King Red and Queen Tiffany give the crown to Lord Mikaru there! At least keep it all in the family! Don’t go turning the throne over to some wannabe-demon douchebag and claim that’s how things are going to be from now on!”

Finally one of those who had been silent decided that was their cue to speak. “Have you ever stopped to consider that that was the original plan?” Mikaru asked dryly. He had not spoken very loudly, but his voice cut through the shouting and the room went completely silent and everyone turned their attention to him. He was leaning back in his chair, legs crossed and feet up on the table they all had been sitting around. His eyes were cold as they slowly scanned every face in the room. “I was the crown prince, after all. When Mother decided it was time for her reign to end, the offer was first given to me to take her and Uncle Red’s place.” He nodded in their direction. “I turned them down. An old man who’s gone soft like me has no place being on the throne. I know that. King Rick’s young and strong. He’s a good man. I was the one who suggested he take their place. If you’re thinking I should be the one at the head of this table, then perhaps you should be considerate of my decision. And if you have a problem with him being a white demon, keep in mind that the second king, who was King Rick’s great-grandfather in fact, was one as well.”

“That does not change the fact that it is tradition that the former king and queen are slain by the one who seeks the throne next! Because that did not happen, as far as I am concerned, then the power should not have changed hands!” the first lord to have spoken snapped.

“The first king was slain by the second. The second was slain by the third. And the third was slain by me. That is hardly a tradition.” Tiffany stated calmly.

“Twice is a futile attempt at being the same as the first. But three times establishes a pattern, Your Majesty! A pattern that _apparently_ many of you do not seem to understand!”

“I killed the king who came before me because he requested that he go out like the others. Or have you all forgotten that? Oh wait, none of you in this room were even present or _alive_ at that time!” She replied coldly.

“Lord Damien, if you have such an issue with who sits on the throne, then perhaps you should challenge all three of us. Challenge myself, my sister, and King Rick. All of us present will go to the arena just outside, and you can kill us yourself and take the throne and this whole argument will be over.” Red proposed. When he was met with silence, he smirked. “You can’t kill us, can you? You know you can’t. That’s why all you’re doing is stirring up a fuss. If you had the power to take the throne with your own hands, you would have tried to by now.”

“I am not the only one who has a problem with this!” Damien shouted, gesturing to those in the room who had been arguing for his side.

“Then all of you can challenge us and try to kill us together.” Red said with a shrug.

Before a silence had a chance to fall over the room, there was a clicking sound. All eyes landed on Mikaru as he withdrew his feet from the table, stood up from his chair, and slowly made his way around the table to where Tiffany and Red were seated. He faced his mother first and pressed the barrel of the pistol he had drawn to her temple. She didn’t flinch. He turned his eyes to everyone present.

“If we cannot decide this civilly, then perhaps I should take matters into my own hands. Lord Damien…” The man in question nearly jumped out of his skin at being addressed. “You spoke up first, so I am holding you accountable for what happens now. Tell me; your main issue with King Rick having the crown is that the former king and queen are still alive, correct?” He was given a single, shaking nod. “Then you must still acknowledge my mother and uncle as the ones in charge. So if somebody were to eliminate them, then would you agree that that person is now the king?” Another nervous nod. “Then I’ll do it.” Mikaru swept his gaze over the room, sending chills down the spines of all those whose eyes he met. “You lot are _pathetic_. None of you have the power to kill Tiffany and Red. _None of you_. That’s why all you can do is yell and hope to intimidate the young King Rick. Well I’m not young. I’m old. I am so very, _fucking,_ old. I’m tired of listening to you lot shrieking and complaining. So I’ll do it. I have the strength to kill both Tiffany and Red, here and now. In fact, I dare say I could kill the whole lot of you who are making such a fuss about this.” He turned his attention back to his mother, whom he had not moved his gun away from at all. “Now tell me, do you acknowledge King Rick, or will the heads of the former rulers be plastered on the walls of this very room?”

“Lord Mikaru…” another demon spoke. “You said it yourself; you’ve grown soft. You wouldn’t really kill your own mother and uncle, would you?”

Not looking away from his target, Mikaru answered. “That depends on what Lord Damien wants. So tell me, Damien, what is it you want me to do here? Do I establish myself as the new king, or will you sit down and stop your pathetic and racist whining about having a White king?”

Seconds passed, the very air of the room completely still. Slowly, ever so slowly, Damien lowered himself back into his chair. A few others followed suite. At long last, he spoke, although very softly.

“I…I acknowledge Rick as my king…”

Mikaru lowered his gun and stalked his way back to his seat where he promptly put his feet back up on the table. Only when his pistol had been properly holstered did the room seem to let out a collective sigh and everyone returned to their chairs as well.

“Sorry about that, Rick.” Mikaru said, casting the young demon a cheerful smile. “You may continue with what you had to say about the dispute of the late Lord Lelina’s territory now.”

*****

The meeting did not let out until nearly midnight. There had been no more discussion of who was in power, but there certainly had been arguments about nearly every other topic. It was to be expected; it happened every meeting. That was simply how things got done in the UnderWorld. It was not uncommon for things to come to violence, but thankfully aside from Mikaru’s own threats, everything else had been kept to a minimum that day. In fact compared to how things usually went it had all gone spectacularly well. They had gotten through and settled on every last matter that had to be discussed. And with the number they had, it was a feat that would normally have taken them two or three days.

 

Mikaru decided to take a much needed rest by climbing his way to the roof of the castle. He sat down and leaned back on his hands to gaze up at the dark, cloudy sky. It was cold, but what with everything that had happened that day, he found it refreshing. He breathed a deep sigh and was about to close his eyes when he heard somebody climbing up to join him.

“How did I know I would find you up here?” Kiko asked, coming to stand beside him.

“Because this was always my favorite spot to relax when I was a child.” Mikaru replied, looking up at him and smiling fondly. “Aren’t you glad you didn’t have to step in today? I was certain Damien was going to try and attack Rick.”

“Were you?” Kiko chuckled. “Somehow I doubt that; you’re not _that_ a bad judge of character.” He sat down beside the lord and handed him a half-empty bottle of clear liquid. “You look like you could use a drink.”

Mikaru took the bottle gratefully and tossed back a quarter of its remaining contents in one swig. He let out an appreciative groan at the burn in his throat and set the bottle between them. “Thanks. I’m surprised you aren’t lip-locked with Rick right now, since you’ve been drinking.”

“Believe me; I want to be. But we have this policy about not doing anything when there are guests in the castle. At least, guests whom we don’t consider to be friends. You know how scandalous it would be if word like that got out.”

“Let’s see… The current king is a white demon, is the great-grandson of the second king, has a single dedicated mate, and did not kill the former king and queen. On the other hand we have the first son of the former queen, who had once denounced his family name and was subsequently cast out by said queen. Yeah, I would say there would certainly be a scandal if word got out that the two of you were fucking.” Mikaru took another swig from the bottle.

“Rick and I are not fucking!” Kiko growled.

“Having sex, then. Just admit it already. None of us believe it stops at kissing.” He was about to take another drink, but Kiko snatched the bottle from his hand and gulped down another mouthful.

“And _I’m_ telling you we don’t have sex. At all.”

“Denial will get you nowhere.” Mikaru replied, taking the bottle back from him and finishing it.

“I’m not like you. I won’t sleep with anything that moves.”

“Neither would I. Now, any sentient creature who shows even the slightest bit of interest in an old man like me? Yeah, I’d fuck ‘em.”

“How long are you going to keep calling yourself old?”

“As long as it remains true! I’m nearly twice the age of most of the lords who were present today. I’ve been nearly twice the age of all the lords for…well…a long fucking time.”

Kiko let out a laugh. “Fair point. Speaking of though…” Mikaru turned to look him in the eye, sensing he was about to tread on sensitive ground. “Would you really have shot Mom?”

Mikaru looked away and breathed a long, tired sigh. “I… I don’t know.” He muttered. “I guess… I guess I would have but I was secretly hoping that Damien, or anyone else for that matter, wouldn’t call me out on it, you know?”

Kiko shook his head. “You really have gone soft. The past you wouldn’t have even asked. You would have put a bullet into both of their heads, as well as into Rick’s just for good measure, without a second thought. Yet here you are, admitting to me on not even half a bottle of vodka that you aren’t even sure if you would have killed them when told to.” When Mikaru said nothing back to him, Kiko hummed and drew a deep breath. “Or perhaps, rather than having gone soft, you’ve gotten more methodical? Mom and Uncle Red are both still useful to you, even if it is for something as trivial as familial companionship. Rick is useful for companionship, too. You consider him a friend. And you said it yourself; he’s a good man. You chose him for a reason, and you don’t want to take his life for something as pointless as that would have been.”

“Way to read me like a damn book.” The younger demon groaned.

Kiko shrugged. “What can I say? I know a thing or two about my little brother.” He playfully nudged Mikaru’s shoulder. “Mom’ll forgive you. Actually, I think it’s more accurate to say that she never had a problem with your actions today in the first place. Uncle Red probably thinks the same.”

“And what about you? You’ve never been one to agree with Mother, but you don’t hate her.”

“I can’t say I would be as forgiving, but you know what? I would have gotten over it. You have your reasons, and whether I agree with them or not, I know you strive to do what you think is best in any given situation.”

“Unlike somebody.”

Again Kiko chuckled. “You really did take the whole ‘don’t grow up to be like me’ thing seriously, didn’t you?”

“I do my best.”

“Well I’m proud of you! If nothing else, you’re a man of your word, and that’s more than anyone can say about most people.”

Mikaru sighed and ran his hands over his face and through his hair. “I just hope things will remain calm for a whole. In case you didn’t notice, there were three other people who never took a side. Any of them could have easily killed Mother and Uncle Red. And myself, too, if they felt like it.”

“But they didn’t.”

“Not every lord attends every meeting. There are plenty more who will object to Rick’s position, and there are plenty more who could take matters into their own hands.”

Kiko hummed in thought. “I don’t think you’ll have to worry about anyone who could kill you. Something tells me that if they didn’t like Rick being on the throne, they would have done something about it by now. I think they’re more interested in sitting back and seeing where things go on their own.”

“You might be right…” Mikaru looked back up at his brother beside him. “You’re being very talkative tonight. Have you had more to drink than that?” he asked, indicating the abandoned bottle between them.

“Nah! I just don’t get to sit and chat with you like this much. I thought I’d take the opportunity to catch up, you know?”

The younger demon narrowed his eyes. “You’re horny, aren’t you? Rick’s not letting you fool around with him, so you’re trying to distract yourself by talking to me.”

Kiko groaned and laid his face in a hand. “He and I aren’t sleeping with each other!” he tapped the claws on his free hand to the stone they were sitting on. “But if you must know…you’re not wrong about the horny and distracting myself part.”

“That figures. Well in that case… Or rather I _should_ say, ‘feel free to reject me’.”

As soon as he had finished speaking, Mikaru got to his knees, turned, and pressed his lips to Kiko’s. Shock crossed Kiko’s face for a split second before both parted their lips and let their tongues meet. Kiko wrapped his arms around Mikaru, gently pulling him down until he was lying on his back with the younger demon on top of him.

“Like I would reject kisses from my cute, little brother~” Kiko purred.

The kisses remained rather slow, almost lazy, but both began to nip and bite at each other’s lips and tongues. When Kiko bit down particularly hard on Mikaru’s lower lip, the demon lord groaned deeply and they parted for breath.

“I see you still like it rough.” Kiko smirked.

“The real question here is: do you still remember how to _be_ rough?”

Kiko playfully rolled his eyes and shrugged. “I think the better question is: how rough am I allowed to be?” Mikaru sat up and pulled his shirt off, discarding it on top of the empty bottle. Kiko’s eyes lit up. “Oh. I see. _That_ rough.”

“What did you think I was doing when I started this?”

“Hey, better to make sure both people are on the same page than to assume. It _has_ been a while.”

“Shut up and fuck me already.” Mikaru mumbled, leaning back down to kiss him again.

Kiko obliged, nipping and biting and licking not only at his lips again, but along his jaw and down to his neck as well. He breathed against his ear and nipped at the fleshy lobe, causing Mikaru to shudder, before trailing more kisses and bites downward. He paused briefly and latched his teeth onto the skin of his brother’s shoulder. He didn’t bite down hard enough to break the skin, but Mikaru had no doubt that there was going to be a mark. Either way, the younger demon moaned with pleasure, his fingers curling into the fabric of Kiko’s shirt.

“You wanna take that off?” Kiko asked after releasing his shoulder, a string of saliva connecting them momentarily.

“Of course. And whatever else you have on, too.”

“You are such an impatient lover.”

“Says the one whose tail is already trying to sneak its way up the leg of my pants.”

“So we’re both impatient. Fine. Let’s just cut to the chase and get naked.”

Without another word, both of them stripped themselves completely bare. From one of his pockets, Kiko produced a tube of lube. Mikaru had half a mind to question why he would keep such a thing on him, but decided that no matter how rough he wanted things, he would prefer not to have his dick bitten off because he had annoyed his brother one too many times.

Their foreplay was bare minimum. Kiko raked his claws across Mikaru’s back, not enough to draw blood but certainly enough to be painful. Mikaru in turn lavished his older brother’s chest and nipples with his tongue and teeth. It was Mikaru who got his hand lubed up and stroked Kiko’s length until it was nicely coated. The two of them kissed, and then Mikaru sat up again and carefully lowered himself down onto his brother’s cock. He took it all in one motion, and Kiko purred happily as he was completely enveloped by Mikaru’s hot, tight insides. He placed his hands on his brother’s hips to help steady him, and Mikaru tried not to dig his claws into Kiko’s stomach as he raised himself up and dropped back down swiftly.

Mikaru set a steady rhythm for them. It was already fast, and Kiko wondered if his pelvic region would be bruised by the time they were finished. Mikaru on the other hand was certain that his hips would be sore with the way Kiko held him so tightly. Kiko’s breaths came in short, soft pants, occasionally punctuated by a short moan. Mikaru was breathing heavily, grunting, and gasping loudly.

“W-wait… M-Mikaru…” Kiko stuttered, his words being interrupted by a sharp moan. “St-stop! Hold up!”

Mikaru stilled, and Kiko gulped down a bit of air before sitting up, wrapping his arms around him, and kissing him sloppily. Mikaru’s fists balled themselves against Kiko’s chest and he welcomed the warmth of Kiko’s tongue into his mouth. Slowly, Kiko laid his brother back down, this time making himself the one on top. He buried his face into the crook of Mikaru’s neck and began to move again.

Mikaru wasted no time in wrapping his legs around Kiko’s hips, holding him tightly as his ass was fucked relentlessly.  Mikaru could come from anal alone, and they both knew it. Kiko pounded into him, holding nothing back as he drove his dick against his brother’s prostate. The younger threw back his head and nearly shouted as his orgasm shook through him, his seed spilling between them. Kiko bit down again, this time on Mikaru’s neck, and fiercely thrust into him. He brought himself to his own climax swiftly, leaving Mikaru’s insides sticky.

Kiko pulled out and flopped down onto the hard stone beside Mikaru. The two lie panting and coming down from their highs for several minutes. Mikaru sat up first, wincing ever so slightly at the pain in his backside. He wiped himself clean of his own semen with his fingers, and then proceeded to lick them clean as well. Kiko grunted as he sat up, more from the effort of doing so than anything else. He wiped what coated his skin on the inside of his pants. The two got dressed, shared another kiss, and Kiko picked up the empty bottle before bidding his little brother good night.

*****

“Welcome back, Master!” Delalo called out upon Mikaru’s return to his palace. Beside her stood Leia, who had been waiting with her for their master’s return. “I take it everything went well? You’re back quite early.”

“There were a few problems, but everything was handled in a timely manner.” He replied, dropping a hand on Leia’s head to ruffle his hair.

“I’m glad you are back safely, Master.” Leia said shyly, a smile crossing his lips. He opened his mouth to speak more, but stopped short as his eyes caught sight of a strange spot on Mikaru’s neck. “M-Master…” he whispered. “What is…?” he pointed.

Mikaru raised an eyebrow in confusion and put a hand to his neck. “What is what?”

“Oh my…” Delalo snickered. “Master, I do believe you’ve got yourself a love mark.”

“Wait, what? Oh _shit!_ ” He spat, realizing what happened. “That bastard! It’s just like him to leave one in plain sight, too! Son of a bitch!” he growled as he stormed off further into the palace. “I am going to _kill_ him the next time I see him!”

Leia’s cheeks burned red after hearing what the spot was. “Him? Him who?” he asked.

“Oh, I’m pretty sure I know.” Delalo stated with a smirk. “It’s nothing to worry about, Leia. No one you need to consider competition. Come on, we need to make sure my brother relaxes properly before letting him sleep.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will I ever tire of Kiko and Rick denying what they have together? No, probably not!


	22. Beach Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Delalo drags the young triplets to the beach! And then she drags them, Arun, Leia, and Que-nu along as well!  
> Silly fights ensue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should have worked on _Alphonso_ this week, but I kind of wanted to do something different. My friend suggested I write something dumb with the triplets. This is the result. =D
> 
> Also hey! The first time ya'll are seein' Jake and Kyle!
> 
> Rating: T  
> Characters: Delalo, Aurora, Kyle, Jake, Que-nu, Arun, Leia

The first time the triplets saw the ocean was when they were young children. Delalo had convinced Faullin and Rain to let her take their sons out for a day, and she decided to show off what joys the ocean had for them.

“Come on you three! Don’t be babies!” the older demon girl laughed. She ran out into the water and turned back to face them.

Aurora and Kyle did not require any more convincing, and both were eager to join her. Delalo gave them a playful splash, which they each returned. Once the two boys began to play amongst each other, she turned her attention back to the beach where Jake had stubbornly sat down on the sand away from the water.

“Jake! Come join us!” she called.

“I don’t wanna!” he shouted back. “Why would I play in the water when I could be reading at home?”

Delalo put a hand on her hip and frowned. “You do know that if you were at home right now, you’d be all alone with your dad, right?”

“I know!” Jake snapped. “I can ignore him, you know!”

“Or you’d find something to fight with him about like you always do. Isn’t it exhausting to only read and get into fist fights with Rain? Come have some fun with us. It’ll do you so much good!”

“Playing in the water isn’t fun.”

“And how would you know that?”

“I’ve been in rivers and lakes before. Not fun.”

Delalo let out a huff. The sounds of Aurora and Kyle laughing and splashing and wrestling with each other in the shallows partially made her want to just give up on the difficult youngest brother, but she didn’t. Instead she tossed the ball she had in her hand to the two boys and made her way back up onto the shore. She stood over Jake and thrust her hand out to him, hoping he would take it and get up. He stared up at her, glaring, challenging her to drag him into the water.

“Are you going to sit here all day like a baby who won’t admit that he can’t swim or are you going to come play with us? Heck, you could play over here on your own, for all I care. I just don’t want you to sit here and pout all day.”

Jake growled at her. “I’m not a baby, and I can swim! I just don’t like water!”

Suddenly the ball that Delalo had just discarded came flying and struck Jake in the head. The boy leapt to his feet and snarled at his brothers. Aurora tried to hide his laughter, but Kyle just cackled loudly at the look on his brother’s face. The youngest brother raced into the water, hell-bent on beating up the both of them as he didn’t know or care which one threw the ball. With a sigh Delalo fetched the ball and returned to the water as well. The two older boys were still laughing and having fun, and Jake was no longer moping on his lonesome. She considered it a victory.

*****

Delalo, Arun, and Leia all took to the water nicely. Delalo had no hang-ups about water whatsoever, and the other two were definitely feeling right at home like the sea imps that they were. Aurora and Kyle were the first of the four men to join them in the ocean. Que-nu had previously expressed not liking water all too much, which was understandable; phoenixes weren’t exactly built to handle water, especially gigantic bodies of it. All the same, he followed his lover and friend in with little hesitation. He was there to goof off with people he liked spending time with, after all. And of course, Jake begrudgingly followed them as well.

It was Kyle’s fault that the fight between him, his brothers, and their friend even started. He had caught Jake off guard, coming up behind him and grabbing him in a choke hold before dragging him backwards into the water. The pissed off youngest brother shouted several expletives between coughing and sputtering. He barely let himself finish taking a steady breath before launching into a counter-attack, trying to overpower Kyle and throw him into the water instead.

Somehow or another, Que-nu got involved. When Jake finally managed to gain some semblance of an upper hand, the phoenix stepped in to aid Kyle. He grabbed the younger demon under his arms and lifted him into the air, causing him to yelp in a rather unmanly fashion. Kyle took hold of his legs and together they tossed him further out into the waves. They both watched Jake thrash about and shout curses at them before turning to high-five each other. The moment their hands connected, Aurora joined the fray.

The eldest brother tackled Kyle, knocking him off his feet and forward into the water before turning to kick Que-nu in the ribcage. The phoenix went down, too, but in the span of time it took him to hit the water Kyle had recovered and made to grab Aurora. He succeeded, and before Aurora could retaliate Que-nu grinned wickedly and advanced on the man who was being held. Aurora’s eyes widened in panic momentarily as he recognized the intention in the phoenix’s expression.

A shrill cry split the air as Que-nu descended upon Aurora, tickling him mercilessly while Kyle restrained him from thrashing his way out of the situation. The white-haired demon shouted, _begged,_ for them to stop and let him go, all the while laughing and losing his breath because of it. Only when tears began to spill from the corners of his eyes did the phoenix let up and Kyle gently release him so that he didn’t just fall straight into the water. Aurora held his sides and tried to take several deep breaths, trying to calm down.

“That…that was not fair!” he declared weakly and made a pathetic attempt at splashing water at the both of them.

Jake, who had been watching the whole thing from where he had been thrown, cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, **_“GAY!”_**

Que-nu shrugged. “I mean, your brother here _does_ fuck me on a regular basis! That is _pretty_ gay!” he shouted back.

The younger brother visibly cringed. “I’m aware. No need to remind me…” he grumbled.

“So does this mean you two surrender?” Kyle asked his brothers.

Aurora sighed heavily and wiped the tears from his eyes, his breathing back under control. “Only because the two of you use some dirty, underhanded techniques.”

“All’s fair in love and war!” Que-nu declared before he and his ally exchanged a victorious hug.

Just then a large wave swelled up beside the two men and crashed down atop the both of them. Aurora turned to find Arun snickering at her own little accomplishment.

“So this is a war now, huh?” she asked. “If that’s the case, perhaps my mate and Rory could use another ally?”

“Now _that_ is playing dirty!” Que-nu shouted as he got himself back to his feet. “No magic!”

Arun shrugged and grinned at him. “I dunno about that. Didn’t you _just_ say that all is fair?”

Before either the phoenix or Kyle got a chance to respond, Aurora smirked. “Oh, that is an excellent idea… I just so happen to be in an advantageous location for my magic, too…”

Both men took a step away from the water and ice wielding individuals, only to run into Jake who had silently crept up on them while they were talking. The youngest brother grabbed them both by the arm, and Que-nu and Kyle knew that whatever was about to come their way was not exactly going to be pleasant.

A short distance away, Delalo caught the beach ball that Leia had tossed her way. “Aren’t you going to intervene?” he asked, eyeing the five behind her just as both the phoenix and middle brother screeched like they were in a horror movie.

Delalo only smiled and shook her head. “Nah. They’re having fun.” She replied, throwing the ball back to the boy. “Besides, your mom’s got this.”

“But it’s three against two…”

“Kyle and Que shouldn’t have taken the side opposite Jake.”

The boy let out a heavy sigh. “I still feel kind of bad for them.”

The girl raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to go even the playing field then?”

“N-no way!” Leia shouted. “I’m not _that_ crazy!”

“Then it’s fine. They’re only playing around anyway.”

Just as soon as she had spoken, both Que-nu and Kyle were flung high up in the air thanks to Arun’s water magic. They crashed back into the ocean a moment later and Leia flinched at way they both had hit the water again.

“Right…playing around…” he muttered.

“Are you gonna throw the ball again or not?” Delalo asked.

Leia breathed another sigh and resumed their little game, trying to ignore the other adults and their rather violent “game” they had going on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This seemed a lot gayer in outline form. I wasn't meaning for it to be so gay, so I'm glad I somehow managed to rein that back in a little.


	23. How They Met

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A woman and I child get captured by some elves...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is actually something I’ve wanted to write for a long time, but have never gotten around to. It’s…admittedly not the best piece of work I’ve ever written, but I’m happy to finally have it out there.
> 
> Rating: G  
> Characters: Tiffany, Talon, Red

A young woman and a small child walked slowly through a forest. It had been days since they had seen civilization of any kind, but that was for the best. They were in unfamiliar lands and the woman wasn’t sure if anyone would be kind to people like them. All she knew was that they had to keep moving if they wanted to escape those who might still be pursuing them.

“My feet hurt…” the child whined.

The woman stopped and scooped him up into her arms. “I know. Mine do too. But we can’t stop just yet. Try to get some sleep while I keep going, okay?”

“Okay…”

The child rubbed his eyes blearily before wrapping his arms around her neck and burying his face into her shoulder. The woman breathed a sigh and tried to pick up the pace a little. She hadn’t been lying. Her feet were cut up, covered in blisters, and rubbed raw in some places. She cursed herself for not knowing any healing magic, but she wasn’t about to stop until she was certain that they were safe for at least a little while.

It was well into the night when she finally decided that no one was going to be able to find them. As carefully as could be so as not to wake the sleeping child, the woman sat down upon the forest floor with her back against a tree. She held the boy close and peered through the darkness down at her feet. She winced at the sight of them. With a groan her mind wandered. She needed to treat them, but there was no way she could do that without putting herself and the child in danger by going into a settlement of some kind. She closed her eyes. She had been going nonstop since they had run from the place the child had been born. She needed to sleep, if only just a little.

*****

The woman jolted awake to find herself and the child surrounded. Panic washed over her and she growled deep in her throat at the spears and arrows that were aimed in their direction. The ones wielding them were small, the tallest not even being four feet in height.

Elves…

If she were in better condition, the woman would not be frightened of them. But she still had a sleeping child in her arms and the haze of sleep had yet to fully dissipate within her mind. Not to mention her damaged feet would make fighting them off or even running difficult. She hoped against hope that they were not going to immediately attack her and the child.

One of them spoke up. “Why are you here, demon?”

“I am only passing through.” She replied as calmly as possible. “I mean no trouble.”

His eyes glanced down from her face to the sleeping form that she clutched. “And the child?”

“He is of no concern to you.”

“I do not buy that. Why is a demon in our woods, and why does it have a child with it?”

“I told you, I am only passing through. I would have continued on and been out of here by now, but I think you can see the condition my feet are in.” she motioned to them as she spoke and several eyes, including the ones belonging to her interrogator, took note of how beat up they were. “This child is mine now. That is all you need to know about him.”

“Yours now? So you have kidnapped him.”

“What does that matter? He too is a demon. What business is it of yours if I have taken him from his mother?”

“The mother might come for him, and if that is the case then his being here is a danger to our people.”

The woman growled again. Somehow she knew they were not simply going to let her go. The sleeping child in her arms began to stir. He rubbed at his eyes again and blinked, looking around them. He was far more disoriented than the woman had been when she had first awoken, but that was to be expected. He was barely more than two, after all.

With a sigh the woman tried to reason with the elves that were prepared to attack. “I would say ‘that is not a problem’ but I’ll bet you can tell it to be a lie. Yes. I am on the run because there might still be people who want this child. But he is rightfully mine. If you will give me just a few more hours to rest, then I assure you that we will be gone. Just as soon as I can walk again, I’ll take us both away from here and you all won’t have to worry about us ever again.”

“I do not believe you.”

The woman cursed. The boy she held stared up at her, his expression a mixture of confusion and fear. Tears welled up in the corners of his eyes.

“What’s going on…?” he asked.

The woman did her best to give him a smile and stroked his head gently. She turned her gaze back to the elves and sent them a pleading look.

“Please. I am begging you: leave us alone. I swear to you that we don’t want you and your kind to get involved in this. We only needed to rest.”

“Demons cannot be trusted.” The man in charge declared. “Both of you surrender yourselves or we _will_ kill you.”

The woman felt ready to cry. She whispered to the boy on her lap to raise his hands above his head while she did just that. She also told him not to give them trouble, to be quiet, and to do as they say. The boy was clearly confused but he did as the woman instructed and raised his arms high. In a flash the elves surrounding them moved. They dragged the boy from her person and bound her wrists with rope. The boy cried out in distress, but quickly remembered what she had said and clamped his mouth shut tight. The woman was prodded with a spear, the skin of her arm just barely pricked enough to draw a single droplet of blood.

“Stand.”

She obeyed the order, getting to her feet and staggering just a little as pain shot through her body upon doing so. Without a word she and the child were escorted deeper into the forest. It soon became apparent why it had been a problem for her and the boy to be where they were, as they had been sleeping incredibly close to where the elves had made their homes. They were brought up into the trees where wooden bridges and platforms had been built to hold up the houses the elves resided in.

The person holding the rope that bound the woman’s wrists gave a sharp tug, and the woman quickly realized that she was going to be led in a different direction than the child. She stopped immediately and stared at the boy that was slowly being taken away from her.

“We are not going to hurt him, if that is what you are thinking.” A different elf from before stated. “He is of use to us. You, however, are being taken to be caged like the wild beast you are.”

While she couldn’t say that she liked the idea of being treated like an animal, the woman went along with them quietly. First and foremost she could not risk doing something that might get the boy hurt or killed. She was led to a secluded section of their settlement that was covered in iron cages. Various dangerous animals were already being held there, including a bear and a few wolves. The likely hungry beasts snarled and growled at them the whole while the woman was shoved into a cage of her own. The entrance was shut and locked up tight, and then she was left alone with her wrists still bound.

The woman curled herself up into a ball and resigned herself to whatever fate was in store for her. She didn’t have the strength to break free, nor the magic to melt the bars. All she could do was hope that by cooperating the boy would remain unharmed…and to hope that he remained complicit as well.

*****

Several days passed. No one came to check on the woman, or to give her word of anything that might have happened or be happening with the boy. All she could do was sit in her cage and worry. Occasionally she passed out and would sleep for a few hours, but mostly she sat and stared at the rest of the elven settlement and hoped that something would happen soon.

A part of her wondered if she was being left to starve. The state of the animals around her seemed to indicate that. One of the wolves had laid down the night before and hadn’t woken up yet. It was nearly noon and it hadn’t so much as given a twitch. She breathed a sigh. Demons did not starve easily. Meaning unless she figured out a way to free herself she was in for a very long and miserable time.

At long last that evening somebody came along with meat for the animals. Those that were still alive got their meager scraps, just enough to live on. The woman watched them, wondering what the purpose of torturing the poor animals was. It would not have puzzled her so if the ones keeping them were demons like herself, but they were not. There was no joy for these elves to gain from starving a bunch of mangy beasts. Unsurprisingly the elf had no food to give to her. He spoke nothing to her and she kept silent as she watched him leave. Asking him any questions whatsoever would get her nothing, and she knew it.

*****

Nearly two weeks into her capture a most unexpected thing happened. Late into the night a young elf with black hair approached her cage. He knelt down beside her and placed his candle on the wooden floor beside him. He stared at her silently for a long minute, and she only stared back at him. Finally, he broke the silence.

“That boy that was with you… He keeps asking how you’re doing.” The woman only continued to stare at him. He breathed a sigh and continued. “He’s being kept chained in the jail. They’re feeding him, barely. But all he does is ask about you. They say that he’s so annoying they’ve stopped going in there unless it’s to give him food.” Still the woman did not respond. “Say… What’s your relation to him? They say you claim he is yours, but that you stole him from his mother. What’s the deal with that?”

The woman only drew a deep breath and turned away from him. She was relieved to hear that the boy was still alive and being treated better than she was, if only barely. The elf sat there for another minute, hoping she would say something. When she did not he huffed and picked up his candle again. He reached into his pocket and placed a few handfuls of berries in the cage. This caused the woman to whip her head back towards him in surprise. He only stood up and made to leave her.

“Wait…” she whispered. He stopped but did not look back. “…Thank you. For telling me about that child.”

He said nothing back and only continued back into the village proper.

*****

The elf returned again a couple of nights later. He brought with him a small loaf of bread, which he offered to her immediately. She took it quietly but did not dig in like he had expected her too. When she thanked him again, he sat down.

“Care to tell me about that boy now?” he asked.

“Why do you want to know?”

“Well, usually when a demon kidnaps a child it is not their own. So what’s going on?”

“You’re really only curious?”

He nodded.

The woman raised the bread to her mouth and took a huge bite from it. The smallest of smiles crossed the elf’s face as she chewed and swallowed. He waited silently for her to finish eating and then passed her a cup of water, which she drank all at once. Once her hunger and thirst had been sated a small fraction, she decided she should say something as thanks.

“That child…is my little brother.” She replied. “I stole him from our mother because she is unfit to raise him. And the rest of her village…they would have killed him for sure.”

The elf cocked his head to one side. “The only villages around here belong to us and humans. Where did the two of you come from?”

“A human village. Both of us are demons born of a human woman.”

“That can happen?”

The woman nodded. “It is rare, but yes.”

That had certainly sparked curiosity within the elf, and just by the look on his face the woman knew that there was a lot more that he wanted to ask. However she was taken by surprise when he stood again and left without another word.

*****

The elf’s visits became a regular thing. Every two or three nights he would sneak out in order to sit and talk to the woman. Whenever he could, he brought with him food or water. He never stayed with her for very long, sometimes only just enough to deliver her food, but he seemed to have a never-ending supply of questions for her. As thanks for his efforts to keep her alive, the woman would answer just about anything he asked of her.

She told him of how she had run away from the village she had been born in years ago. She only went back there recently because she had caught wind of her mother having given birth to another demon. When she had arrived, her mother and little brother were about to be killed. She had managed to snatch away the child, but she had left their mother behind. The woman explained that one look was enough to tell anyone that her mother had gone insane and that it might have been better for her to be killed. She then tried to run away, but the villagers had given chase. She had only stopped to rest because she absolutely had to, and that was when she had been captured.

“So then, you were trying to give your brother a chance at life?”

“I was.”

“And you haven’t tried to escape because you don’t want us to kill him?”

“That’s correct.”

And once again the elf left her alone without anything further to say.

*****

Just over a month after her capture, the elf came to her in a hurry. Immediately the woman knew that something wasn’t right. She opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong, but he shushed her before she could even make a sound. He produced two keys from his pocket and held them up for her to see.

“If I release your brother and set you free, will you take me with you?” he asked.

The woman blinked in surprise. “Why do you want to go with us?”

“If I released you two, my people would have my head. So I’m not going to free you unless you promise to take me with you.”

“Alright, I’ll change my question. Why would you free us?”

“It isn’t right that you’re being kept here. No one wants to deal with either of you. Whether that’s to feed you or kill you. They’re only feeding your brother because it’s keeping you from potentially killing us all. I want to let you out because I know it is the right thing to do. These other creatures that are caged here have actually killed our hunters many times before. You aren’t like that. You’re not going to harm us, you just want your brother to be safe. So, will you take me with you?”

The choice was obvious. “I will. Set myself and my brother free, and I swear to you that I will take you with us.”

The elf nodded. “That’s all I needed to hear.”

Without further ado, he unlocked the cage and the woman crawled out from it. She stood for the first time in so long that she was a little unsteady despite her wounds having healed completely. The elf produced a knife and cut the ropes free from her wrists. He gave her a moment to rub her hands over the raw skin before leading her back into the village. In silence the two snuck through the various levels and passed buildings. Finally the elf motioned for her to wait while he ducked into the jail to release her brother. Once all three were outside again, the child hurried into his sister’s arms and the two embraced only briefly. The woman picked the boy up and followed the elf until they were back on the ground.

Once they had put a good distance between themselves and the village, the elf spoke up again.

“By the way… I don’t think I’ve caught either of your names.”

The woman thought on it for a moment and could not recall giving hers or her brother’s. And for that matter, she did not know the elf’s.

“I am called Tiffany, and this boy is Red.”

The elf flashed her a grin. “I’m Talon. Next question: what’s your plan from here on out?”

“I’m not certain… However, I have an idea. It will take a very long time, and I will have to do a number of a terrible things to get there, but I’ve heard a rumor going around in the UnderWorld. Their king was slain not long ago, and the killer has claimed the throne…”

Talon didn’t need to hear a single word more to understand what she was getting at. “If that’s the case, and for what it’s worth, I wish you the best of luck!”

The faintest of smiles crept across the woman’s features. “…Thank you…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To make it a little more obvious for people: this is how Mikaru, Delalo, and Kiko's mother and father met! =D Tiffany is their mom, Talon is their dad. And Red is their uncle.


	24. Giving Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiko is back to feeling like his old self, for the most part. He and Rick finally get some time alone, which can only mean one thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To celebrate this series getting 69 hits, I just HAD to write smut. ;) Enjoy~
> 
> Rating: E  
> Characters: Kiko, Rick

Rick had had a very productive day. Four different meetings had gone over well, and a whole litany of decisions and suggestions had been made from a number of fronts. As such when the last of his duties had been fulfilled, the king looked forward to doing nothing more than relaxing and maybe spending some quality time with the knight who had been at his heels the whole day.

“You up for a few drinks?” Rick asked the man.

Kiko flashed him a grin. “Is the sky blue?”

The king gave him a playful smack upside the head. Kiko snickered happily and clarified that yes, he was _absolutely_ up for a few drinks with Rick. The king led the way to his quarters, with Kiko playing the dutiful knight the whole trip by following closely behind him. On their way, Kiko stopped one of the servants and instructed that neither he nor their king was to be disturbed until morning. The maid fidgeted, having still remembered the last time such an order had been given, and replied that she would inform the rest of the staff. Kiko watched her go before trotting a few steps to catch up with Rick again.

“You’re surprisingly calm.” The king commented.

“How so?”

“It wasn’t long ago that you were concerned about the castle staff learning of…us. And yet here you are, not exactly skirting around the issue when giving them instructions.”

“Look, I’ve just accepted that everyone already knows after the little stunt you pulled last time. Which, by the way, is still incredibly hot. Just so long as any guests to the castle don’t find out, I’ve decided that don’t care anymore.”

The pair reached Rick’s quarters. Typically the man would share the space with his mate, the queen, but on her own whims she had decided to sleep separately from him for a few nights. In the privacy of the king’s rooms, Kiko was free to shed himself of the “proper knight” persona and he unceremoniously fell face-first onto a couch with a groan of satisfaction. Rick chuckled at his behavior and went to fetch them both something to drink. When he returned, the elf had rolled onto his back with one arm dangling off the couch and onto the floor. Kiko accepted the drink graciously and sat up just long enough to take a quick sip of it.

“You’re going to get your brand new clothing all wrinkled if you keep behaving like that.” Rick stated as he took a seat on the floor in front of the couch, leaning his back against it.

“Bah! Like I care. It can be ironed out. The stuff my sister makes is good and strong. Not like your frilly clothes which probably can’t take the heat.” His comment was accompanied by a half-hearted swat to the king’s shoulder.

“Hm, I suppose you have a point.”

The two took a moment to gulp down a good portion of their drinks. They gave a twin pair of sighs at the burn in their throats and Rick tipped his head back to rest it on the cushion of the couch. Kiko reached over to him and began to idly run his fingers though his hair, nails lightly scraping his scalp.

“It’s still kinda weird that I don’t have to worry about my claws hurting you anymore…” the elf muttered softly.

The king gave a short laugh. “To be fair, I still have some trouble seeing you as an elf whenever I picture you in my head. Although speaking of which, have you taken a look at yourself in the mirror yet?”

Kiko grimaced. “Yeah, I have. Delalo insisted I try on the clothes she made for me, and I kind of… I decided I should actually take a look at myself finally if only to see how they fit. It’s… It’s weird. I mean, I’ve seen what I look like as an elf before. It’s not like I don’t know the magic to change my appearance some. But to see myself this way and have the knowledge that it’s the new norm and that I can’t go back…I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little remorseful.” There was a moment’s pause before he quickly added, “But don’t get me wrong! I stand by my decision and I would do it again if I were somehow able to go back in time.”

A smile tugged at Rick’s lips. “So I shouldn’t make a call to Elli?”

The question earned the king another light slap on the shoulder. The pair finished off their drinks and Kiko got up to get them a refill. When he returned, he plopped himself down on the floor beside Rick.

“So uh… Out of curiosity, what do you mean by ‘whenever you picture me’?” the elf asked.

“Exactly what I said. I’m sure you’ve done it for a lot of people. When you talk about somebody, or think about them, or maybe you’re bored and staring off into space thinking of all the deep philosophical things in life like whether pineapple belongs on pizza and then your mind drifts suddenly for no reason and a person’s face floats quickly across your consciousness.”

Kiko clicked his tongue. “Bummer…”

Rick cast him a side-eyed glance. “What were you hoping for?”

“Oh, you know, maybe for you to mean that you use me as some sort of masturbation fodder. Remember I said I still find it sexy how you hadn’t even tried to hide what we were in the middle of when you told that guy not to bother us? Yeah. I like thinking about you being all confident and assertive like that.”

The little blush of color that spread across Rick’s face made Kiko feel like he had just won some sort of competition, especially given the somewhat-disapproving look the man shot him in addition. The elf grinned broadly. One of Kiko’s hands found its way to Rick’s thigh and he leaned in closer to the man to speak softly into his ear.

“What can I say? _Somebody’s_ been depriving me of the real thing. I’ve gotta do _something_ to make up for it. You just happen to be easy to imagine, what with being around all the time…and because you’re the source of the problem.”

Rick set his drink on the coffee table in front of them and shifted to face his companion a little better. “So what? Are you trying to tell me to take responsibility for your sexual frustration?”

A dangerous twinkle in Kiko’s eye almost made Rick want to back away. The elf’s hand moved further up his thigh and his thumb began to rub little circles into it.

“On the contrary, I think I should be giving back after all the pampering you did for me while I was recovering.” Kiko stated.

The elf leaned in further and Rick found himself meeting him halfway for a kiss. Somewhere in both of their minds they had to wonder how things got to where they were now. What had started as getting drunk and making out for a laugh became making out for a laugh without the drinks. Then somehow the new norm for their drunken selves was to see who could be made to pop a boner first, then the alcohol was once again lost but things still remained just for comedic purposes. The strangest part? The first time they had actually had sex was a time when neither one had been drinking at all…and no part of it had been to get a laugh out of the other. And now here they were, almost shameless in the fact that once again they were going to have sex and it was in no way a joke.

Rick was the first one to part his lips and open himself up for Kiko to raid his mouth with his tongue. The elf was eager to push on ahead, and the king responded in kind. Rick’s hands found the elf’s waist and he pulled the man to straddle his lap. Kiko broke their kiss only to make sure his drink was placed securely on the table beside them before diving back in to devour his friend’s lips. The hand on Rick’s thigh traveled higher still and came to stop directly over his still-flaccid dick. The elf palmed him gently and his mouth left Rick’s so that he could kiss and mark the column of his neck. The king didn’t know what Kiko had in store, and decided to simply comply with whatever it was he wanted.

Beneath the elf’s hand, the king slowly grew hard. His breathing came in soft pants, which Kiko was delighted to feel through his throat with his lips and teeth. Kiko’s hand found its way beneath Rick’s shirt and reached to grope at his chest and play with his nipples. At almost the same time, Rick grew a little bold and slipped his own hands beneath the waistline of Kiko’s pants and underwear in order to squeeze his ass. The elf breathed a chuckle against the base of Rick’s throat.

“I dunno what you’re thinking of, but you aren’t getting that tonight.” He murmured.

“Not planning to ride me?”

“Nope.” With a long, slow, swipe of his tongue up the length of Rick’s neck to his chin, Kiko added, “I have something _else_ in mind.” The obvious way Rick’s dick came to full attention at the implication had Kiko chuckling again. “I told you, I want to thank you for pampering me so.”

“Since when do you suck cock?” Rick asked him.

“I’ve been known to do it from time to time.”

“Do I dare ask who’s is on that list?”

Kiko rolled his eyes. “There’s only three people on the list of who I ever fuck. Pretty sure you can figure that out for yourself.”

The king frowned. “You are disgusting.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

Before Rick could even think of a witty remark, Kiko pressed another open-mouth kiss to his lips. Rick melted under him, going so far as to lie back without resistance when the elf pushed against his shoulder. The king allowed Kiko to remove his shirt and the elf kissed his way all down his chest and stomach. The man beneath him breathed a little moan as Kiko’s lips dipped below his naval and teased the skin just above his waistline.

“Know what else I’m not used to yet?” Kiko murmured against his skin, casting his eyes upward to meet Rick’s. “Not having to worry about my fangs when I deep-throat somebody.”

The lewd groan that tore itself from Rick was incredibly satisfying and all the permission Kiko needed in order to work on opening up the king’s pants. Rick remained complicit and raised his hips so that his knight could pull down both pants and underwear together. His dick sprang free excitedly, and Kiko took it into his grasp not a moment later. He gave it a few strokes until precum began to dribble from the tip. Still holding the king’s gaze, Kiko bent down and flicked his tongue across the head, gathering the beads of precum before swallowing them back. A shudder wracked Rick’s frame and he fought to keep his eyes open to watch.

His efforts were rewarded. Kiko wasted no time in slipping the head of his cock into his mouth and giving it a quick suck. Inch by agonizing inch Rick watched as the entire length was taken in by the elf’s mouth. Only once his nose was buried against thick curls did he pull off again, his tongue dragging across the underside the entire way.

“Wow…” the king breathed. “You weren’t kidding about deep-throating…”

Kiko took a moment to cough into the crook of his arm. “It’s a bit harder than I remember it being. Must be because I’m, you know, smaller than before.”

“It felt _amazing_.”

The elf smirked. “Well then, guess I won’t back out and use my hand instead. Not that I was planning to anyway.”

Once more the king’s cock disappeared between the elf’s full lips. A few experimental bobs, sucks, and licks was all it took for Kiko to figure out how best to go about doing things with his physical changes. In no time he was bobbing his head, sucking on the tip, and licking the full length in his mouth rhythmically. Rick lost his own challenge of keeping his eyes on Kiko, instead shutting them tightly and tipping his head back while an endless stream of pants and moans escaped from his lips.

A couple of minutes in, Rick became vaguely aware of the sounds of Kiko working to free his own dick. The king tried to get a good look but barely managed to register that yes, the elf was jerking himself off, before he couldn’t keep his eyes open any longer. A part of him wanted to congratulate the man for not missing a single beat of sucking him off while he had gotten his own dick out. However he couldn’t find the presence of mind to even begin to try and voice how impressed he was.

Needless to say, it was the king himself who came first. Like a champion Kiko swallowed back several times as the thick cum hit the back of his throat. He came off of Rick’s dick with a wet pop and immediately went to working himself over faster. Kiko was barely aware of the king pulling him in for a kiss until it happened. The whine that spilled from the elf’s mouth when he finally came was consumed by Rick’s mouth as Kiko emptied himself across the taller man’s chest.

The two laid on the floor together for several minutes catching their breaths. Together they sat up and downed what was left of their second drinks before they shed what remained of their clothes. Rick didn’t even need to make the offer; Kiko followed him into the bathroom without a single word exchanged between them. The chances that they would only use the shower to wash themselves was almost non-existent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I was thinking about what sort of thing I should write, I discovered that I have not written a single blow job for MITUW since starting to take my writing more seriously, and that is just criminal! How could I not write my favorite porny thing for my favorite batch of OCs?! And thus, I have fixed this problem. *nod nod*
> 
> And I just want to add: don't be shy! Feel free to talk to me in the comments, I don't bite. =D


	25. Encounter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Que-nu goes to a night club in hopes of finding a woman to spend some time with. Instead he finds somebody better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look I know the last chapter was a blowjob and I do try and mix it up a bit for y’all but:  
> 1) I wanted to write some more porn for the holidays. (WHICH ARE STILL GOING! NEW YEAR’S IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!)  
> 2) I have written like three buttsexes for MITUW and only one blowjob and I actually don’t like butt stuff all that much but I _love_ writing BJs and I’m overdue for writing one for Rory and Que (who are basically my default couple for all things porn).  
>  So there you have it; the reason this is another blowjob!
> 
> And with that said...
> 
> Rating: E  
> Characters: Que-nu, Aurora

It had been completely by chance that the two ended up in the same place at the same time. The music pounded in Que-nu’s ears upon entering the club, but this was no surprise to him. The loud beats could be heard several blocks down the street, after all. His eyes briefly skimmed the room as he made his way over to the bar. In the middle of the room was of course a mass of bodies writhing and grinding against each other to the music. The phoenix hoped that by some stroke of luck he would be lucky enough to meet a lady and, with her, join the mob of people.

He reached the bar and immediately ordered a shot from the bartender. He downed it, delighting in the way that it made his throat burn. His eyes went back to roaming the room, exploring and looking to see if there were any lone women, or group of women that lacked any male company. There were, and he began to consider which of them he would try. He was about to approach a couple of redheads when his eyes picked up on something far more interesting.

A familiar tall, dark skinned, and white haired person had just left the body of dancers, and with them stumbled a younger man. Que-nu watched as the tall one led the other over to the wall, where they then practically threw him onto. The taller one pinned the other there, looming over him with eyes half-lidded. A little, predatory half-smirk caused the shorter man to visibly shudder, and a pain of envy shot through the phoenix. The taller one hooked a thumb and forefinger onto the other’s chin and tilted his head up before leaning in for a kiss.

But that’s as far as it went. The younger man gave the tall one a frightened shove, to which the tall one immediately backed off. The younger man didn’t even look back as he hurried to rejoin what Que-nu assumed to be his group of friends. Their reactions were a mix of laughter, disappointment, and teasing. The poor man blushed and simply stared at the floor. The tall person, on the other hand, merely gave a shrug and began to look around the room in the same way that Que-nu had been.

Their eyes met, and the person smirked. In a few long strides, the person came over and sat down at the bar beside the phoenix.

“My, what luck I have tonight to find such a handsome man here.” The white-haired person cooed.

“Was that the same line you fed that poor guy over there?” Que-nu asked, nodding his head to the man in question.

“Actually no. He and his friends are here for his twenty-first birthday. They approached me, asking if I was willing to show him a good time. Apparently he’s a virgin who likes tall women, but I suppose I was little too aggressive for him.”

Que-nu shook his head. “Well, I suppose that’s lucky for him then, considering you’re a _man_ , Rory.”

“Aw, don’t go spoiling the surprise!” Aurora laughed. “Besides, I already told him. He seemed fine with it while we were dancing. _More_ than fine, actually.”

Aurora got the bartender’s attention and ordered a concoction of some sort. All Que-nu knew was that it was neon green and practically glowing, and that it probably shouldn’t be consumed because of that. He eyed it suspiciously as the demon threw back half of it at once.

“And just how much have you had to drink tonight?” the phoenix asked.

“Hm? Oh, this is my first one, actually. Any more than this and I’m done for.”

“I know that, that’s why I asked.” He sighed. “How can you and your brothers have such pitiful alcohol tolerance?”

“Beats me, but it sucks.” Aurora groaned and sipped at his drink. “So, find any decent ladies tonight? I assume that’s why you’re here.”

Pink eyes glanced over the room again. The two redheads had disappeared from view. Que-nu returned his attention to Aurora and smirked.

“Couple o’ cute ones a moment ago, but it seems they’re busy now. Not that that’s a problem…” his gaze raked over Aurora’s form sitting elegantly atop the admittedly uncomfortable barstool. White hair that would frequently be tied up was loose and fell over his shoulders. One of his collarbones was exposed by the top he was wearing, as was his midriff. The black miniskirt and thigh-high boots were a sight that the phoenix was familiar with, but it happened to be one of his favorites. His eyes lingered on the margins of skin that were exposed as his eyes returned to Aurora’s face. _He’s wearing lipstick tonight…_ he thought briefly. _It’s purple, so I almost didn’t even notice._ “The question is: am I a sufficient replacement for your previous prey?”

Aurora hummed playfully, mocking thought over the question. “Well, I suppose I _could_ keep you company tonight. I’m no lady, but if you’re willing to have me instead…” he chuckled. “Care to dance?”

“Lead the way.”

The demon got to his feet and took Que-nu by the hand. They joined the writhing mass of bodies, and Aurora began to dance. The sway of his hips almost immediately caught a few other eyes, and Que-nu joined him. Admittedly, he wasn’t much of a dancer, but having an attractive partner made it fun. Aurora ignored the attempts of a couple other men who attempted to dance with him and pulled the phoenix in closer. Que-nu’s hands found the demon’s hips, and there they stayed.

With the music thrumming and the heat and excitement of those around them, Que-nu found himself enjoying the way that he and Aurora swayed and ground together as they danced. Aurora was already just a bit taller than him, but the heels of his boots made that distance a lot more prominent. The phoenix loved it; even tilted his head back to look Aurora in the eyes with their bodies pressed together and moving the way they were.

They stayed together, dancing, through a handful of songs. Somewhere along the line the close proximity and alcohol seemed to kick in, and their already not-so-innocent dancing became more daring. Que-nu’s hands fell over the curve of Aurora’s backside and traced the bare skin of his thighs. The demon gave an approving hum, hands slipping beneath the front of the other’s shirt and skimming his nails across his abs.

Upon the first stifled groan from Que-nu, Aurora leaned down and whispered, “The edges of the room are a lot more private…” into his ear before giving it a teasing bite.

“Works for me.” The phoenix murmured back.

Aurora took a step back, leaving Que-nu to instantly miss his warmth. The demon took him by the hand and dragged him out of the dancing masses. The two found a quiet little spot against the wall, and Que-nu delighted in being forced back against it. He no longer had anything to feel envious about when the demon loomed over him, pressed against him, and brought their lips together. Que-nu hummed in satisfaction against the other’s mouth. He wrapped his arms securely around the other, pulling him in closer before finding that delicate expanse of skin on his thighs again. Aurora licked into his mouth, which the phoenix willingly opened up for and joined him. The demon’s hands found their way beneath his shirt again, and his nails raked over his abs and chest.

But it wasn’t enough.

When their mouths separated in order for them to catch their breaths, Que-nu didn’t even need to voice his complaint. His eyes were doing an excellent job of pleading on their own. To top it off, Aurora had already had a feeling that more was needed. The demon smirked and nipped at Que-nu’s throat.

The phoenix was about to voice his displeasure when he felt a couple of pricks against his neck. His body shuddered, the feeling sending sparks straight to his crotch. He let out an almost inaudible _yes_ at the way the demon’s fangs threatened to penetrate his skin at any moment. A hand on his chest curled, and claws left little scratches all down to his stomach.

But it still wasn’t enough. Aurora was only teasing him.

Que-nu practically whined. He lifted a hand and ran it up Aurora’s back, beneath his shirt. “More.” He breathed, grinding against the demon in an attempt to coax him along.

Aurora grinned. “As you wish~” he breathed into the other’s ear.

The demon’s mouth found his neck again. Teeth and tongue got to work; sucking, licking and biting every inch possible. Que-nu groaned lowly. Aurora’s bites weren’t enough to break skin, but they were sure to leave bruises, and the thought of seeing them all in the morning had him more aroused than it had any right to. Sure, hickeys were nice, but the love bites would always be his favorites.

A gasp tore from the phoenix’s throat and he shuddered again. Aurora snickered against his collarbone and splayed his fingers across Que-nu’s hip where his claws had just ripped into. Drops of blood were smeared, and the demon pressed against the wound to elicit another whine from the shorter man. The phoenix cursed and ground his erection against Aurora, who did the same right back.

Aurora brought his hand up to his lips and his tongue curled around his fingers. Que-nu watched breathlessly as the demon cleaned every last speck of blood from each digit before asking, “Bathroom?”

“Bathroom!”

Once more Que-nu lost the demon’s wonderful heat against his body. But this time when his hand was taken, the pair made a beeline for the men’s bathroom. Whether it was empty or not, they didn’t bother to check. Aurora pulled them into one of the far stalls and locked the door behind them. Que-nu already had his back against the wall when the demon turned to him.

Immediately the demon was upon him again; mouths meeting, tongues pressing around and against one another, and lips bitten until they bled. Claws dragged across down both of Que-nu’s sides, making him moan into Aurora’s mouth. A hand slid up the back of the demon’s skirt, in order to grope and squeeze his ass. The other found its way under the loose top in order to trace lithe muscles.

Aurora gave Que-nu’s abused lips one more kiss before he dropped down to his knees. A hand palmed at the bulge in the front of the phoenix’s pants, and the pink-haired man whined again. Aurora chuckled before popping the button open and dragging down the zipper. Boxers and pants were pulled down together, freeing Que-nu’s poor needy cock. The demon licked his lips and placed a gentle kiss to the inside of a thigh. After which, he bit down, _hard_ , fangs piercing the skin. The phoenix’s hips stuttered and he groped uselessly at the wall behind him. Blood trickled from the open wounds, which Aurora gleefully dragged the flat of his tongue across. A hand that had previously been simply holding Que-nu’s other thigh squeeze, the claw on the thumb now digging into the flesh and spilling blood as well.

The demon lapped at the new spot before kissing and biting his way higher. Again, each bite was fierce and would definitely leave bright rings of bruises in their wake. Instead of giving attention to where the phoenix wanted it most, Aurora moved on up to one of his hips. He gave it the same treatment as before: biting in order to draw blood before lavishing the spot with his tongue.

Aurora leaned back in order to admire his work. Red trickled down trembling thighs, weakly stuttering hips, and strong sides. Bruises were beginning to form beneath the skin of the phoenix’s neck between smears of purple, and soon his thighs would be matching. His lips were stained red and swollen. And of course, his cock stood weeping and red, begging for the demon’s mouth to come into contact with it.

Aurora obliged.

He pressed a kiss to the head, smearing precum against his lips where there had once been lipstick. The phoenix moaned as he watched the demon take all of him into his mouth at once. He could feel the head of his dick press against the back of Aurora’s throat, and the demon hummed around him. Que-nu almost felt like he could cum just from that, but of course Aurora had more in store for him. He bobbed his head, setting a furious pace to match Que-nu’s level of arousal. Every time he drew back, his tongue would swirl around the tip, and he would give a hard suck and swallow around the whole length with every dip. A thumb pressed into the bite on the phoenix’s hip, and Que-nu was reduced to a panting, moaning mess.

The phoenix watched everything with rapt attention, despite the haze of arousal in his head. No matter how many times he saw or felt it, he would forever be in awe of Aurora’s ability to give him head. The demon just made it look so easy! The absolutely _lewd_ sounds of his licking and sucking drowned everything else out in his mind, including his own moans that echoed around the bathroom walls.

“R-Rory…!” he gasped.

He didn’t have to say a single thing more. Aurora knew by the sound of his voice what he meant. He took all of him into his mouth again and Que-nu came down his throat. The demon swallowed without missing a beat, milking him completely dry. He came off of him with a wet _pop_ and proceeded to lick his lips clean.

Que-nu slumped against the wall, sliding down it a few inches. He wanted to sit down, but the bathroom floor was not a good place for that. He managed to take a few calming breaths before pulling his pants back up. He then motioned for Aurora to stand. The demon did, and Que-nu promptly switched their places. He pressed his chest flush against the other’s, and their lips found each other again. The phoenix slid a hand up Aurora’s thigh, and the demon raised it in order to wrap his leg around his hips. The hand continued beneath Aurora’s skirt. Que-nu was not surprised at all to find that the other wasn’t wearing any underwear of any kind.

His fist closed around the demon’s shaft and he gave it a few sharp tugs. Aurora groaned against his lips. The demon cupped the phoenix’s face in his hands to pull him even closer before wrapping his arms around his neck. Que-nu began to stroke him quickly and kept up with each kiss that the demon demanded from him. The phoenix felt his shirt be pulled up, and claws began to tear up his back. He groaned again, reveling in the attention and delicious stinging sensations.

Aurora himself came with a gasp and a shudder. Que-nu was careful to make sure that everything got onto his hand and not their clothes. He yanked free a length of toilet paper in order to wipe them both clean. The demon lowered his leg and barely gave him a chance to the throw the dirtied wad in the toilet before dragging him back in for another rough kiss.

When they parted, the phoenix had to laugh. “Am I going to have to buy you some underwear?”

The demon smirked. “If that’s your way of asking me to model all sorts of lingerie for you then sure! But otherwise no, I’m quite happy with my choice tonight.”

The phoenix rolled his eyes, but did make a mental note to take him up on that offer sometime. “Well, I must say that I was hoping to give my time to a lady tonight, but I think this was a much better way to spend my night.”

“Really? The night is still young, I’m sure you’ve got plenty more you could still be doing.”

“Are you brothers at your house?”

“They shouldn’t be.”

“Alright, then let’s get out of here and go find a surface we haven’t done it on yet!”

Aurora chuckled and the two stood upright. They quickly got their clothing back in order and both ran a hand through their hair in an attempt to make themselves look less disheveled.

“I think the coffee table in the living room is still virginal.” The demon stated.

He unlocked the bathroom door and the two began to leave.

“Sounds like a plan to me. That is, so long as you go back to looking like yourself. I miss your black skin and horns. Your tail, too.”

Aurora chuckled. “Of course. I’m tired of pretending to be a human anyway.”

 

* * *

By the way, if anyone was curious, here's a drawing of these two that a friend of mine did about four years ago! =D (But honestly, Rory is _way_ more womanly in my head.)

[ ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/139201842@N03/38622776234/in/dateposted-public/)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The full-size version of that pic: [here~](https://flic.kr/p/DgPYCg)  
> No but seriously, do not be shy! =3 Leave a comment if you would like; I always reply to every one I get!


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